An Eye for a Lie
by laoisbabe
Summary: While investigating a case, Gibbs meets a young lady claiming to be his daughter Kelly. Together they seek answers. Then things turn sinister. FINAL CHAPTERS UP. Nothing new added - just fixing some issues with the last 2 chapters.
1. Chapter 1

It's a crisp November morning when the NCIS team arrive at Quantico Military Base. As the team alight the van, they survey the smouldering remains of a base bungalow. The Fire Department are gathering their gear as they prepare to leave. The Fire Captain approaches the agents to give then an update.

"Is one of you guys Special Agent Gibbs?" he asks wearily.

"That'd be me," Gibbs replies, producing his I.D. "Any idea how it started?"

"Sure. Gasoline. Doesn't even look like he tried to disguise it. They doused the windows and doors and cut off all means of escape. Poor bastards were trapped. Two dead, two critical," he informs the investigative team.

"Do we have the identities of the victims yet?" Gibbs asks.

"A Sergeant Tyrone Willis and his son, Nathan. His wife and 3 year old daughter are critical last I heard," the fire captain tells him. Gibbs shakes his head in disgust.

"Any witnesses?" DiNozzo asks.

"One. That guy across the street. You could start there. I gotta go. Hope you catch the creep," he says, turning back towards his men.

"We'll get him," Gibbs promises. He turns to his team, determination in his eyes. Just as Gibbs is about to assign duties, Ducky and Palmer arrive in their usual disorganised manner, Ducky chiding Palmer for his lack of map reading skills as he opens the van door.

"Hey, Duck," Gibbs calls to his old friend. "The Fire Department removed the bodies from the scene. They're over there."

Ducky throws his arms in the air in frustration. He hates when his scenes are disturbed. He mumbles something barely audible and then proceeds to the remains. Gibbs turns back to his team with a hint of a smile.

"DiNozzo, McGee, photos and evidence. Ziva, you're with me," he says, marching smartly across the road to the house the fire captain had pointed out. Ziva scurries after him. Gibbs knocks on the front door. The door is opened almost immediately by a burly middle-aged army major. Gibbs introduces himself and Ziva and is invited in. After exchanging brief small talk, Gibbs gets down to the task at hand.

"The fire captain told me that you saw something last night," he begins.

"Sure did. I was sitting on the steps out front, having a cigarette. The wife doesn't let me smoke in the house. Anyway, it was about zero three hundred hours and…"

"What were you doing up at that hour?" Ziva interrupts.

"I don't sleep so good these nights. Anyway, as I was saying, a car stopped across the street. To be honest, I didn't pass much remark. A guy in civvies got out and walked around back. I presumed that it was Sgt Willis coming home. It was when he came back around front that I thought it odd. Then he poured something on the porch. That's when I knew something was wrong. I ran inside to get the phone. By the time I came back out the porch was on fire."

"Did you get a look at the car?" Ziva asks.

"It was a black or navy Mitsubishi, I think. I'm not really good with cars," the Major admits.

"How about the man you say? Did you get a good look at him?" Gibbs asks.

"I couldn't really see. It was dark. There was another guy waiting in the car. He looked straight at me as they drove away. All I saw was that he was white, early twenties and wore a crew cut. Not much I know, sorry," he replies.

"What about the victims? Can you tell us anything about them?" Ziva asks.

"They seemed like a nice family. Kept to themselves. My daughter used to babysit sometimes. Those poor kids, who could anyone do such a thing?"

Gibbs shakes his head. He's about to ask another question when the door bursts open and a young woman with a backpack bursts though.

"Oh my God! What happened Dad?" she asks, not realising that the two agents were there. "Oh, excuse me," she apologises.

"It's okay baby," Major Stenson says, putting his arms around her. "These are NCIS agents investigating the fire across the road. This is my daughter, Kelly," he says in introduction. "I'm just answering a few questions for the agents. I'll tell you everything in a few moments. Go through to Mom. She's in the kitchen."

The young woman smiles at the two agents, her eyes lingering on Gibbs for a moment longer. There's something familiar about him. She excuses herself wondering if they'd met before but not asking. Her father and the agents continue their conversation.

"Sorry about that. She's just home from college for the weekend. She'll be so upset when she hears about those poor children," the major tells them.

The agents continue their questioning and eventually return to the scene across the road. By the time they return, Ducky has removed the bodies and left for the lab. DiNozzo and McGee are still photographing the burnt out home.

"When you're finished here, you guys head on over to the hospital and see how the wife is. Talk to her if you can. Ziva, we need to talk to Willis' C.O.," Gibbs says as he walks to his sedan.

Across the road, in the Stenson's kitchen, the young woman is asking her Dad about the male agent he had been talking to.

"Have we met him before, Dad? He looks so familiar," she asks.

"I don't think so, honey. I've never met him before," the Major tells her.

"What's his name?" she enquires.

"I can't remember. Gibson or something like that. Hold on, he left his card on the mantle," he says, returning to the living room.

"Special Agent Gibbs, NCIS," he announces on his return.

"Gibbs?" she repeats, recognising her former surname, the name she relinquished after the Stensons adopted her.

"Oh," her father says, realising the connection. "I never even thought. I wonder if he's related in someway to your family. Why don't you keep the card and give him a call sometime?" he suggests.

Kelly goes quiet, lost in thought. She hugs her Dad and takes the card and goes up to her room. She opens her closet and takes a shoebox down from the top shelf. It couldn't be, she thinks as she takes the lid off. She was convinced that her mind was playing tricks on her. She rummages feverishly through a pile of faded photographs until she finds the one she is looking for. It was a picture of a young marine in uniform, head shaved and smiling broadly for the camera, her first Dad. She remembered the day this photo was taken. He was leaving for Kuwait. There were tears and lingering hugs. She missed him so much. He was still away when the accident happened. She still couldn't remember too much about that fateful day. She recalls waking in the hospital, asking for her Mom. Little did she know that her mum had died instantly and was buried the week before she regained consciousness. Eventually they broke the news to her. For so long after she begged for her Daddy to come home, for so long she was told he was far away. Then one awful day a soldier came into her room. He was accompanied by a priest and another lady. They looked sad. It was then that what was left of her life evaporated. They told her that her Dad had been killed in action. The next few weeks in hospital were a blur until one day the same lady came into her room and told her that she was going to get a new family. That was the day she met the Stensons.

Through the tears in her eyes she again focuses on the photograph in her hand. Add a decade and a half and a few extra pounds, it certainly could be the same man she thought. She couldn't be sure. She took up the business card again. She had to know for sure. She sat on the edge of her bed for ages, trying to summon the courage to make the call, trying to figure out what to say. While she thought this could be her father, she was swamped with so many questions. Why did he pretend to die? How could he abandon her? She wanted answers. She took a deep breath and dialled the number on the card.

"Yeah, Gibbs," he answered almost immediately. The suddenness of his reply startles Kelly.

"Oh," she begins shakily. " This is Kelly Stenson, Major Stenson's daughter. We met briefly this morning."

"Oh yes, Ms. Stenson. What can I do for you?" Gibbs asks.

"Em, I was wondering if I could talk to you," she asks hesitantly.

"Sure, go right ahead," Gibbs replies.

"Would it be possible to meet you somewhere, it's important," she tells him, not wanting to talk on the phone.

"Okay," Gibbs replies, a little bewildered. "Has this something to do with the fire?"

"Yes," she lies.

"I'm on my way back to my office now but if you could come to my office, I could see you later today," Gibbs informs her. "How about 5.30pm?"

"That would be great. I'll see you then," she says before hanging up.

Gibbs is a little perplexed about the young lady and wonders what is so important that she cannot tell him over the phone. He decides not to dwell on it. She was the Willis' babysitter after all. Maybe she knew some family secrets.


	2. Chapter 2

Gibbs is back at his desk when DiNozzo and McGee arrive back from the hospital.

"Any word on Mrs. Willis?" he asks the pair.

"No change Boss," Tony informs him. "The doctors say she is unlikely to regain consciousness any time soon. They have her sedated for the pain."

"And the little girl?"

"She's in intensive care, but she's stable," McGee informs him.

"We really could do with speaking with the wife. Keep in touch with the hospital. I want you by her side the minute she opens her eyes," he orders.

"Yes, Boss," they answer in chorus.

"I got a call from the kid's babysitter," Gibbs informs the team. "She may be able to shine some light on their marriage, family life, outside interests. She'll be here soon."

Almost exactly at 5.30pm the elevator door opens and Kelly Stenson steps into the NCIS office. She scans the room looking for that familiar face. Upon noticing the pretty young thing looking lost and vulnerable, Tony is quick to his feet and swiftly over to her to offer his assistance.

"I'm looking for Special Agent Gibbs," she informs him.

"Sure," he says, a little dejected. "Please come this way. Hey Boss, someone to see you."

Gibbs peers over the dividers and recognises the young woman approaching. He gets to his feet and extends his hand in greeting. She shakes his hand and he is momentarily taken aback when he looks into her eyes. It is as if he is transported back 20 years and he is lying on a beach peering into Shannon's eyes. The abruptness of the recollection throws him and he quickly withdraws his hand from hers, as he realises that he has been holding on to it for longer than others would deem appropriate.

"I'm sorry," he apologises. "It's just, you remind me of someone. Please, come with me and we can talk," he says brushing off the embarrassment and leading her to one of the interview rooms.

"Have a seat," he offers. "Okay then, where would you like to start?"

"Sorry, what?" Kelly answers, as if she hadn't heard a word he had said.

"Where would you like to start? The Willis family maybe?" he encourages.

"To be honest, I don't really know where to start," she admits.

"Take your time," Gibbs replies patiently.

"It is you," she declares. "I can't believe it."

"Excuse me?" Gibbs replies, baffled by her declaration.

"They told me you were dead," she continues.

Gibbs put his elbows on the table and leans closer, almost as if he's having trouble hearing her.

"I'm not sure I know what you're talking about," he replies, looking quizzically at her.

"In Desert Storm. Killed in action, they said," she goes on.

"How did you know I was in Desert Storm?" Gibbs demands, starting to lose patience with the young lady.

"I waved goodbye to you the day you left. I watched you drive away," she tells him.

Gibbs pauses, unsure of what to make of the young woman and what she was saying. He finds himself looking into her eyes again. She looks so like her, like Shannon, he thinks. He studies her features and then sits back in silence, totally confused. What is she saying? Then she produces a photograph from her handbag and lays it on the table.

"That is you, isn't it?" she asks. He picks up the photo and looks at it.

"Where did you get this from?" he asks angrily. He starts to perspire. What the hell is going on here?

"Mom took it. Don't you remember? It was taken the day you left," she tells him.

"Mom? Do you mean Shannon? Who the hell are you?" Gibbs demands, standing abruptly and pounding the table. She had really touched a nerve. Kelly leans away from him, frightened. She had to tell him. She had come this far and there was no going back now.

"I used to be Kelly Gibbs. My Mom died in a car wreck when I was eight and until today, I thought you had been killed in Kuwait," she says clearly.

"Kelly? It can't be," Gibbs says, all of a sudden feeling sweaty and nauseous. "I don't know what your game is, but my wife and daughter died sixteen years ago. They were murdered. You're not real," he shouts at her as he pushes his chair away and makes his escape from the nightmare through the interview room door. He bolts down the corridor in a distressed state, almost knocking the director over in the process.

"Jethro?!" she shouts after him, seeking an apology but not receiving one.

He continues his escape until he ends up in the autopsy laboratory. He bursts through the doors even more vigorously than usual. He is out of breath and confused.

"Good Lord, Jethro. You frightened the life out of me. I did tell you that I'd call you if I had any…..," Ducky starts before noticing the state his friend was in.

"What's happened Jethro? Are you alright?" he asks as he approaches the distressed agent. Only then does he notice the sweating and hyperventilation and realises that his friend could be having an anxiety attack. He takes him by the shoulders and guides him to a chair.

"Sit down, Jethro," he orders. "Good, now nice slow breaths. In … and out. In …and out. That's it, nice and slow. What on earth has brought this on?" Ducky asks.

"She's not real, Duck. I think I imagined her. I don't know what's happening," he rambles. Ducky looks at him with a worried expression.

"You're not making any sense, Jethro. Who's not real?" Ducky asks.

"Kelly. The girl in the interview room, she says she's my Kelly," he tells him.

"Oh God, Jethro. Your Kelly died. You do know that, right?" he says trying to reason with Gibbs.

"I know Duck. But I spoke to her, and she looks so like Shannon. It's uncanny. Can you do me a favour Ducky? Go up to the interview room and see if there's a young woman there. And if she's there, ask her to show you the photograph? Please, I need to know if I've lost my mind. Please," he pleads.

"Of course, Jethro. You wait here and calm down. I'll be right back," Ducky promises.

Ducky makes his way to the interview room and true enough, there's a young lady sitting at the table in the middle of the room. As soon as he enters, she stands up and immediately asks,

"Is he okay? I didn't mean to upset him."

"What exactly did you say to him young lady?" Ducky asks sternly.

"I told him the truth. My name was Kelly Gibbs, before I was orphaned and became Kelly Stenson," she tells him.

"Look, I don't know how you know about Agent Gibbs and his family or what you hope to gain from this cruel charade, but it ends now," he chides.

"It's not a charade," she says defensively. "It's the truth. I think Agent Gibbs is my father, the same father who I was told died 16 years ago," she tells him, pointing to the photograph on the table. Ducky picks it up and studies it. There's no denying that it's Leroy Jethro Gibbs in the picture.

"Good Lord. That's Jethro alright. But Kelly and Shannon died in a car wreck."

"Mom died. I survived. I don't really remember much, except the months of rehab that followed and being told that I was an orphan. It's not a time in my life I want to remember," she smiled softly as she spoke.

"But why would anyone tell you that Jethro had died. Granted, he was quite seriously injured and was evacuated to hospital in Germany, but he recovered, only then having to come to terms with losing his family. Why would anyone tell you he had died? What could be gained from that?" Ducky asked himself more than Kelly.

"That's why I came here. I need to find some answers. I was hoping he could answer some questions for me," she tells Ducky. Ducky thought for a moment then spoke.

"If you are who you claim to be, you won't object to taking a DNA test for me."

"Not at all, if it will prove to you who I am," she answers.

"Right. Wait right here and I'll return in a moment with a test kit," he says, as he leaves the room. He returns to his lab and finds Gibbs somewhat calmer though he jumps to his feet when Ducky returns.

"Well, what happened?" he asks urgently.

"She is quite believable, Jethro. She told me the whole story. Remarkable! I've asked her to take a DNA test and she is more than willing," he informs him, taking a couple of swab kits from a drawer in his desk.

"You'll need to give a sample too, Jethro. I'll drop them up to Abby for testing. Don't worry, I won't say who they're from," he smiles, as he hands Gibbs the swab.

Gibbs rubs the swab around the inside of his cheek and hands it back to Ducky. Ducky seals the sample and returns back to the interview room, to where Kelly is waiting. He watches closely as Kelly swabs the inside of her cheek. He takes the sample from her, thanks her and then makes his way to Abby's lab.

As he enters Abby's lab, he is met with the din from what Abby loosely describes as her music.

"Hi Ducky," she shouts enthusiastically when she sees him. "Have you got something new for me?"

"Yes, well not in relation to this case. I just need a DNA comparison done," he informs her.

"Not a problem. Might take a while, Gibbs is waiting on results from these tests I'm running. He'll be down shouting at me if they take much longer," she tells him.

"I really don't think he'd mind if you got these done first," he suggests.

"Okay, I'll call you when they're ready," she says, taking the vials out of his hand and turning back to her machines.

Ducky thanks her and returns to his own lab. He sees Jethro, now pacing around the exam tables. He turns when he hears Ducky enter.

"I need to speak to her again, Duck," he says with determination.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Ducky replies, questioning the decision.

"I need answers, Duck, and so far she's the only one who seems to have any," he tells him as he pushes the lab doors and leaves autopsy. He walks with resolve towards the interview room. He pauses outside the door to gather his thoughts. Then, with a deep breath he enters. He sits back down across from Kelly, without saying a word. From the moment he enters, her eyes follow him.

"Would you like to tell me what's going on?" he calmly asks.

" I was hoping you would tell me," she replies. "So was it part of your plan to pretend you were dead, so you wouldn't have to raise a kid on your own? I've been trying to work out why, but maybe because Mom was gone, you couldn't bear having a constant reminder of her around," she spits out.

"God no! I didn't….. I mean I never…..," Gibbs stutters, taken aback by the accusations and resentment in her voice. "They told me you were dead, both of you. Then I got injured. I woke up 3 weeks later in a German hospital. I eventually got to your funerals. My whole world had disintegrated. I'd lost my family, my whole life. I didn't want to live, but I did because I had to find the murdering bastard who took them from me. Every day I think of them and every day I miss them. So why would someone tell me you had died if you were alive? How could anyone do that?" he exclaims.

"I don't know. I was told that you had died from your injuries. Why? I don't understand," she cries.

"I don't know, but I'm sure as hell gonna find out," he promises, leaning closer to the trembling girl. He wasn't sure whether to go to the other side of the table and hold her, therefore accepting that she was his Kelly. He decided to play it cautiously and wait for the DNA results before accepting anything. For now, he thought it best to treat the whole saga as if it was a case he had been assigned. He told her he would investigate her adoption and try access to his own military service records. He knew he was going to have to start way back when he was first deployed, if not before.

"I guess we need to talk to Major Stenson first," he tells her as he gets to his feet and walks to the door. He pauses at the door and turns around,

"Well, are you coming?" he asks.

Kelly grabs her bag and follows him out. He doesn't speak. He marches through his office, past his team, without even a word to them. All the time, Kelly is in hot pursuit. He holds the elevator for her and then he presses the button for the parking garage. As the evelator door closes, DiNozzo turns to McGee,

"Woah! The Boss looks pissed," he laughed loudly. "Wonder what she said to put him in that kind of mood?"

McGee just shrugs and continues tapping his keyboard engrossed in his work.


	3. Chapter 3

The journey back to Quantico was a quiet one. Both Gibbs and Kelly each had dozens of questions buzzing around their heads. Each wanting answers, each afraid of what they might hear. Kelly furtively studies the man sitting beside her. He is like a stranger to her now. His stern demeanour seems alien to the father she remembered. He used to smile and joke and make her and her Mom so happy. Her mind wandered back to happier times, trips to the beach, picnics in the mountains. She wanted to remind him of these times but she was uncertain of what his reaction might be. So instead, for a time, she contemplated quietly.

Gibbs on the other hand, was fighting to control the anger that was building up inside him. He stared straight ahead at the road. What if the girl sitting beside him really was Kelly? If someone had asked him yesterday, he would have jumped at the chance to have his little girl back in his life. But at this very moment all he had were suspicions and anger. It made his blood boil to think that someone, somewhere may have faked her death, to think that someone stole his child and robbed him of his reason for living. Someone would have to answer for this, he'd make sure of that.

He glanced through the corner of his eye towards Kelly. She sat impassively in the passenger seat watching the scenery go by through the car window. She had her mother's bone structure, he noticed. He found himself wondering if this was a dream and if he would wake up any time soon.

Eventually they arrived back outside Kelly's home. As the car stopped, neither passenger seemed too eager to get out. The exchange glances and Kelly places her hand on the back of Gibbs' hand. He looks into her eyes and again is momentarily transported to times of birthday parties and bedtime stories. Startled by the vividness of the memories, he snatches his hand away and gets out of the car. Kelly, surprised by his reaction, get out and follows him up to the front door. He doesn't knock instead standing back and allowing her to use her key. She lets them in.

"Dad?" she calls out automatically.

"Is that you Kel?" he answers from the kitchen.

"Dad, Agent Gibbs is back again. We need to talk to you," she shouts in to him.

The Major comes into the living room drying his hands in a towel.

"Agent Gibbs, good to see you again," he says sitting into an armchair. "So, you found a family connection, did you?" he asks smiling, never expecting the answer he is about to receive. Kelly and Gibbs exchange glances. Gibbs nods discreetly towards her.

"Agent Gibbs is my real father," Kelly blurts out. Gibbs doesn't react to the announcement, instead gauging the Major's reaction. He is quite calm considering what he's just been told.

"Hold on a minute, your father is dead. We've visited his memorial," he reminds her.

"I know, I was there, but I also remember my father. Look. This is the last photo my Mom took of him," she says holding out the same photograph she had shown Gibbs. "It's him."

"My God! They told us you were K.I.A. and Kelly was an orphan. Why would they tell us that? How could this happen?" Major Stenson asks, looking genuinely shocked at the news.

"I was hoping you could tell me," Gibbs replies.

"I don't know what I can tell you. Sarah!" he calls out to his wife. She joins them in the living room. They relate the news to her and she turns pale with shock as she realises what they're telling her.

"Would you mind showing me the adoption papers you have and giving me a list of anyone you can remember who helped organise the adoption?" Gibbs asks.

"Of course not. The papers should be upstairs. I'll get them for you," Sarah says, getting up and leaving the room.

"What can you tell me about the adoption, Major?" Gibbs asks.

"It was a long time ago. Where do I start?" he asks.

"The beginning would be good," Gibbs says, trying not to sound curt.

"Well, Sarah and I left it late in life before we tried to have children. Then we discovered we couldn't. We contacted a number of state agencies but because of our ages and my occupation they weren't very positive. So we decided to contact a few private agencies. They seemed a little more hopeful but told us that it would cost us. We didn't have much savings but we devoted all we had to the cause. Then one day, out of the blue, we got a call to say that the daughter of a marine had been orphaned and they were looking for an urgent placement for her. We couldn't believe our luck," he tells him. Then he realises what he's just said.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it to sound like that," he apologises.

"That's okay," Gibbs acknowledges, before urging the Major to continue his story.

"When we first met her, she was in hospital, still recovering from the accident. She looked so lost and helpless and we just knew we had to help her. The guy from the agency who called us said he had a contact in the hospital who could speed up the process."

"Did you pay this guy?" Gibbs asks.

"We paid $30,000. But they said it was only to cover her hospital expenses," he explains.

"Did you check that out?" Gibbs asks sternly.

"Well, we were just so delighted that…" the Major begins.

"That you didn't check everything out?" Gibbs interrupts crossly, glaring at the Major.

Mrs. Stenson return breaks the tension. She is armed with a manilla folder full of documents and hands them straight to Gibbs. He takes them from her and thanks her.

"Do you mind if I take these with me for a while and go through them?" he requests.

"Not at all, Agent Gibbs. Anything we can do to help," she replies.

"I have to get going," Gibbs says standing up to leave. "I'll be in touch."

Kelly walks him to the door. He pauses to say goodbye and finds himself at a loss for words.

"I'm sorry," is all he can manage, not really sure why he was apologising but thinking it was appropriate.

"Me too," is all she says in response.

As soon as Gibbs leaves, Stenson excuses himself and walks outside to have a cigarette. Taking advantage of being alone, he makes a quick call on his cell phone.

"Don? It's Jeff. We need to talk."

-------------------

Gibbs returns to the office. DiNozzo and Ziva are at their desks.

"You get anything from the babysitter Boss?" DiNozzo enquires.

"More than you know, DiNozzo," he replies cryptically as he strides past Tony past his desk and straight upstairs towards the director's office.

Tony raises his eyebrows and looks over to Ziva. She gives him one of her exaggerated smiles, enough to leave him thinking that she knew something that he didn't. She loves getting under his skin.

Gibbs continues to Jen's office. Her secretary isn't at her desk so, not unusually, he barges in unannounced. Luckily she's alone.

"Jethro! Don't you ever knock?" she says, knowing it was him without having to look up from her desk. He stands straight in front of her desk, like a schoolboy at the principal's office.

"I need some time off," he announces.

"What?" she laughs, thinking he was fooling around. Then seeing that he was quite serious she asks what it was for.

"It's personal," he replies revealing nothing.

"Ah, I get it. Another mini retirement, right? A few weeks in the sun and then waltz back again when you feel like it?" she asks sarcastically.

"Nope," he answers curtly.

"Ah, come on, Jethro. Something's happened, hasn't it? You can tell me you know. It won't go any further," she tells him, getting concerned by his reluctance to tell her. The first thing she thought about was his health.

"You wouldn't believe me if I did," he answers shaking his head.

"Try me!" she dares him.

"Okay. I just met my daughter, Kelly, today."

"Kelly? Okay, that I am finding hard to believe," she fakely smiles, thinking he was fooling around until she sees the unfaltering expression on Gibbs' face. "You're serious, aren't you?" she says, with a disbelieving expression on her face. Gibbs nods and sits defeated into a chair across from her. He rubs his tired eyes and furrowed forehead as he begins to tells Jen the events of the day. She listens in disbelief as he talks, his voice faltering only once. Her heart breaks as she listens to his anguish and his anger. It's late by the time they finish.

"Whatever I can do, Jethro, I will. We'll find out, okay? Right now, you look like you could do with some sleep. Try, that's an order. I'll tell DiNozzo in the morning, that he has the lead on the Willis case," she tells him as they both put on their coats and leave for the night. Gibbs thanks her for listening and they go their separate ways.

When he gets home, rest is the last thing on his mind. He grabs a bourbon and the folder Mrs. Stenson had given him earlier in the day. He makes a list of every single name that appears in the folder. He didn't care how many trees he had to shake or how many feathers he had to ruffle, he was going to get to the bottom of this.

_TBC_


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning Gibbs returns to the office early. He runs the list of names he has accumulated through various databases, hoping some of them might be flagged for one reason or another. None of those on the list show up any indiscretions. He did, however, manage to get hold of the last known addresses for most of them and decides to make contact with all of them. It isn't long before Ziva comes in, followed closely by McGee. Eventually, DiNozzo turns up making excuses for being late again. Gibbs decides that he should tell them that he would be taking some personal time off. They were surprised to say the least.

"Is everything alright, Boss?" DiNozzo asks, genuinely concerned at the suddenness of the announcement.

"Something unexpected has come up, thats all, and I need to deal with it," Gibbs tells him, not wanting to go into too much detail.

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Ziva offers.

"Yeah. Find out who set fire to the Willis' house for me. You'll be lead agent on this, Tony," he informs DiNozzo.

"No problem Boss," Tony replies, chuffed to be lead agent again.

Gibbs gets up from his desk and walks smartly towards Abby's lab, leaving his three agents wondering what was going on. Abby is busy talking to "Major Mass Spec" when he comes in.

"Hey, Gibbs, I don't have anything for you yet," she scolds.

"That's okay, Abs. Call Tony when you get anything. I need to tell you something," he begins.

"Oh, Gibbs," Abby says with concern, recognising the serious tone in his voice. "What is it? It's serious isn't it?"

"Something has come up," he begins and then explains that he won't be around for a while. Again she is shocked but before she gets a chance to probe further into his reasons, he asks about the results of the DNA test that Ducky had left down.

"The samples are definitely related, Gibbs. Parent and child I would think. Has this something to do with your decision?" she eventually asks.

"Kinda," he replies. "I guess it means that my daughter Kelly is alive."

"What?" she responds stunned. "How?"

"It's a long story Abs. Short version, she was told I was dead and put up for adoption. Someone stole her from me Abs, and I'm going to find out who."

Abby puts her arms around Gibbs and gives him a comforting hug.

"That's great news, Gibbs," she gushes. "About Kelly being alive I mean, not about someone taking her," she says backtracking. "How did you find her?"

"I didn't. She found me," he tells her.

"Right! So what can I do to help," she offers, standing straight almost to attention.

"Right now, I don't want everyone to know. I've only told Ducky and Jen. I'd like to keep it that way for a while," he explains.

"Not a problem. Your secret's safe with me," she promises him.

"Thanks Abs," he says kissing her on the cheek before turning and leaving. He calls by to Ducky to tell him the results of the DNA tests.

"That's great, Jethro. Have you told her yet?" Ducky asks.

"Not yet. I'm on my way to Quantico to talk to a few people who were involved in her hospital treatment. Just happens a few of them are stationed there. Then I have to travel a little further a field to Mansfield. There's a doctor up there I need to speak to. First, I guess I'd better call to the Stenson's and talk to Kelly," he tells him as he takes his leave. Ducky pats him on the back and wishes him luck.

It isn't long before Gibbs finds himself standing on the front porch of the Stenson's house once again. He feels different this time, nervous almost. Sarah Stenson answers the door and invites him in. She calls Kelly. She makes polite conversation with Gibbs until Kelly appears through the door. Then she excuses herself and leaves the two alone. Gibbs stands close to the mantle piece and Kelly approaches him shyly.

"Any news about the fire?" she asks awkwardly.

"Not yet. My team are still following up a few leads," he tells her. There's an awkward silence for a few moments until Gibbs sums up the courage to tell her what he's come to tell her.

"The tests have come back positive. We are related," he informs her.

"So, science has confirmed it and you can't argue with science, can you?" she asks. Gibbs shakes his head, smiling.

"I still can't believe it's you," Gibbs admits. "You do look so like your mother though. It's frightening."

He takes a step or two so that he's closer to her. He reaches out and brushes a stray strand of hair from her face. He sees her eyes well up with tears.

"You're all grown up," he says before putting both arms around her and hugging her tightly. "My little girl is all grown up," he repeats, his faltering voice indicating the emotion he was feeling at that moment. The tears stream down Kelly's face as she feels the warmth of her father's love after 16 years. After a couple of minutes they both manage to compose themselves and sit side by side on the sofa. Each has a multitude of questions for the other.

Kelly is curious as to whether her father ever re-married and is surprised to hear how many failed marriages he'd managed to notch up. Then she wonders about brothers or sisters. She was even more surprised to hear that he never had any more children. He tells her all about his job, his hobbies and where he's living. She smiles when he tells her that he still lives in the same house that they shared as a family. He asks her to visit soon.

Kelly tells Gibbs about life over that last 16 years. Shortly after she was adopted the Major was re-assigned to a post in Florida. They lived there for 10 years. From there they moved to Jacksonville and then back to Quantico two years ago. She is attending George Washington University, majoring in physical therapy. She is on an athletics scholarship. Gibbs had noticed the number of trophies and pictures proudly displayed by the Stensons. The afternoon flies by as Gibbs relaxes in the presence of his daughter. By early evening, Mrs. Stenson invites him to stay with dinner. Gibbs graciously declines the invitation explaining that he actually should have been somewhere hours ago.

He turns to Kelly and explains that he intends to track down those involved in her hospitalisation and the adoption. It so happens that a number of personnel are stationed at Quantico. She suggests that she accompany him but he tells her that it's too personal if she's with him. At least he'd feel more professional about it if he did it alone. She is understanding about this and doesn't push it. He also tells her of his plans to go to Mansfield, Ohio the following day to speak to a couple more former military personnel who treated her.

"Mansfield? My Uncle Don lives there," she tells him.

Gibbs wonders if Uncle Don is the Dr. Donald Parkinson he has on his list. He is a former Marine Corp doctor now working at a private clinic in Mansfield. Kelly confirms that it is. She asks that he let her accompany him on the trip north. He is indecisive at first but after much pleading by Kelly, he relents and allows her.

"Great!" she says hugging him again. "It'll be like a road trip! We can get to know each other again."

"Alright then," Gibbs smiles, still not sure it's the best idea. "I'll pick you up at 8.30am."

It's getting late when Gibbs meets Lt. Maria Makilov, base counsellor at Quantico. She remembered Kelly and her adoption well. It had been one of her first cases after she had qualified and she remembered it as being particularly sad. The girl's mother had died and her father had been killed in action only days later. She recalled her sessions with Kelly in the aftermath of her loss. She had spent a number of weeks with her and remembered being surprised at how quickly her adoption had gone through. She had been told that the child's new family had arranged a new counsellor and that she would no longer need to attend her. Gibbs thanked her for seeing him and then made his way to the base medical centre to speak to a Nurse Amy Lyman. She was listed as the Staff Nurse who attended Kelly while she was being treated. She had a vague recollection of Kelly and her time in hospital. It stuck in her mind because it was unusual to treat a child in the Naval Hospital. They don't have too many paediatric patients there normally. Nothing else stuck in her memory about the patient or her treatment.

Disappointed not to find out more, Gibbs returns home for the night. He trieds to get some sleep but sleep evades him so he spends a few hours working on his boat. It has been his way of unwinding for years. Eventually he grows tired and heads to bed and grabs a few hours sleep. He has an early start the next morning.

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	5. Chapter 5

The next morning Gibbs pulls up outside the Stenson's home bang on 8.30am. Kelly is watching from the living room window as he parks. She is down the driveway and into Gibbs' car almost before he knows it.

"Good morning!" she chirps as she slides into the passenger seat.

"Morning," Gibbs replies with a smile. "Coffee?" he says, offering her one of the two Styrofoam cups from the drinks holder.

"No thanks. Never touch the stuff," she replies.

"Really?" he chuckles to himself, seeing the irony. He just presumed that any daughter of his would be as dedicated a coffee drinker as he.

"Really, thanks anyway," she answers.

Gibbs takes a large swig from his coffee cup and then starts the engine. It isn't long before they are leaving Quantico for the long drive to Mansfield.

It doesn't take long before father and daughter are reminiscing about their lives before the accident. He tells her stories about her mother. She listens intently, absorbing every detail, trying to remember little things herself. He tells her about how Shannon and he met, about their wedding day, about their excitement when they found out they were going to be parents. Gibbs realised as he spoke, how long it had been since he had even thought about those days. It had caused him way too much pain and only served to remind him of how much he had lost. Yet, in that moment, telling Kelly, it seemed like the most natural and pleasant thing to talk about. She had never heard some of the stories before and had forgotten most of the others. It was emotional for both of them, talking about what had been and what had been taken from them.

Kelly then told Gibbs more about her life with the Stensons. They had been so kind to her. She had suffered head injuries in the accident, which left her suffering from memory loss, difficulty in concentration and some behavioural problems initially. With treatment and counselling and a lot of love and affection, she gradually regained most of her memory and learned how to cope with her other problems. She tells him about growing up in Florida, her school days, her Prom and her love for sports. In High School she excelled in Basketball and Track and Field, hence her scholarship. Gibbs was impressed by the young lady beside him. It made him proud to think that she had overcome so much and still managed to stay positive and make a life for herself. He would have loved to have been there, of course, to see her triumphs and her disappointments and regret gnawed at him.

They drove for almost four hours, conversing most of the way. Eventually they found themselves outside Cedar Pines Private Clinic. They parked the car and entered the building and found reception. They looked for directions for Dr. Parkinson's office. They are informed that the office is located on the 4th floor. There they are greeted by his secretary who informs them that unless they have an appointment they won't be able to see him. Kelly informs her that she is his goddaughter and that she's only in town for the day and would like to say hi, just for 5 minutes. The secretary smiles at her and says she'll see what she can do. She makes a brief call and then turns to the two.

"You may wait in his office. He'll be back in about 15 minutes," she informs them.

Consultant Neurologist, Gibbs notes the plate on the door as they are shown into his office. The secretary closes the door as she leaves.

"Nice!" Gibbs comments, as he takes a seat on one of the tan leather chairs and admires the opulent décor.

"Yeah. Uncle Don can be somewhat extravagant," Kelly informs him.

Gibbs picks up some medical journals and thumbs through them while waiting. Kelly sits back and daydreams. Almost 20 minutes later, Dr. Don Parkinson arrives back. Picturing a strapping aging marine, Dr. Parkinson is not at all what Gibbs had pictured. He's a greying gent of slight build, several inches shorter that Gibbs.

"Kelly, my dear. What a surprise," he exclaims, throwing his arms around her in a big bear hug. "What are you doing in Mansfield?"

It's a long story, Uncle Don. This is Special Agent Gibbs. He's an NCIS agent," she says introducing Gibbs. He extends his hand and they shake.

"NCIS? This is not a social call then?" he enquires, looking slightly puzzled.

"I might as well just come out and say it," Kelly says, glancing over at a bemused looking Gibbs.

"Say what?" Parkinson asks.

"Special Agent Gibbs is my father, my biological father."

"What? How could he be? I thought he died the Gulf," the doctor says.

"Well, I didn't," Gibbs tells him. "That's why we're here. I'm investigating the circumstances leading up to Kelly's adoption. You see, I was told she had died and she was told I had died. Seems like a whole lot of lying was happening back them. So I'm speaking to everyone who was involved," Gibbs says glaring menacingly.

"My God! This must have been such a shock for you, Kelly. How are Jeff and Sarah taking it?" Parkinson asks.

"They're confused, looking for answers too," Kelly tells him.

"So, Dr. Parkinson, what was your role in the adoption?" Gibbs asks getting straight to the point.

"Very little really. I was more involved in treating Kelly's injuries. I was on call on the night of the accident. When she was brought in, she was one very ill little girl. It didn't look like she'd make it, but she's one tough kid. I remember some of the nurses talking later saying what a shame it was. Her Dad had been killed in action. Child services were brought in and I suggested they get in touch with Jeff and Sarah. That's pretty much where my involvement ended," he explains.

"Would you normally get involved in such matters?" Gibbs asks.

"Not usually. It was just one of those things. I thought it might help, I felt sorry for her," he replies.

"The night of the accident, did you treat Shannon, Kelly's mother?" Gibbs wonders.

"No. I can't be certain, but I think she died at the scene," he recalls.

"And who would sign death certificates?" Gibbs asks.

"It depends. Could be any of the doctors on call that night but it's usually the doctor who treated the deceased," he informs him.

"How easy is it to fake one?" Gibbs continues.

"I don't know, I've never tried," Dr. Parkinson replies, getting slightly aggravated by the insinuation. Kelly glares at Gibbs for his menacing approach to questioning her Uncle.

"Look, I wish I could be more helpful, Agent Gibbs, but I have patients waiting. I really have to get back to work," the doctor tells them, standing up and walking towards the door.

"Of course, Uncle Don. We won't keep you any longer. It's been great seeing you again," Kelly says, giving him a peck on the cheek.

"You too, Kelly," Parkinson replies. "Nice meeting you, Agent Gibbs."

"Likewise," Gibbs replies. "I'll be in touch."

As soon as he closes the door, Dr. Parkinson sits behind his desk, a very worried man. He flicks though his address book and finds the number he wants and dials it immediately.

"It's me," he says, not identifying himself. "I need you to take care of a little problem for me."

"What kind of problem?" the voice on the other end of the line enquires.

"The kind that just won't go away," he replies. "And do me a favour, make it look accidental. I'll leave the details in an envelope for you at reception. Everything you'll need to know will be inside. Whatever you do, don't contact me here."

With that he hangs up and puts on a smile and puts his head out the door and invites his first patient to enter.

As they step into the elevator, Kelly turns to Gibbs.

"You were a bit rude, weren't you?" she says unimpressed with his approach to questioning her uncle.

"Call it what you like," Gibbs replies. "I need to get answers and I'll get them the only way I know how."

"Don't you know it's easier to trap bees with honey?" she says informatively.

"No, beekeeping wasn't one of those skills they teach in the marines," he replies smartly. Kelly cannot help but laugh and realises that she'll just have to put up with his less than perfect ways.

They decide to go for something to eat and find a nice little diner not far from the hospital. Over lunch they chat and Gibbs tells her that there is another person on the list also living just outside Mansfield. He suggests that they call out to her as soon as they've finished. Her name is Elizabeth Mills. She was the Senior Nurse assigned to the ICU when Kelly was a patient. Gibbs calls her from his cell phone and explains that they'd like to meet with her. She is agreeable and they arrange to call to her home later that evening.

It is beginning to get dark by the time they drive out to Ms. Mill's house. After travelling about 8 miles on the main road, they turn down a narrow lane and drive for about another mile. The house is remote but Ms. Mill's directions were spot on. The little cabin lay nestled among trees, looking out onto a large pond, very picturesque.

Elizabeth Mills has been retired for five years and was living alone in the pretty cabin. She was a stereotypical spinster type, hair pulled tight into a bun, stern face that made even Gibbs nervous, yet when she began to speak her voice revealed her kindness. As Ms. Mill's prepared tea for her guests, Gibbs began to relay Kelly's story. He was surprised when Ms. Mills told him that she remembered the case clearly.

"Poor thing," she recalls. "I remember how my heart ached every time I came in to you. You were so quiet and so sad. I tried everyday to make you smile but you never did. I remember someone gave you a teddy bear. My Lord, did you squeeze the stuffing out of him! You clung on to him for dear life. The nights were the worst. You cried out for your folks in your sleep and it used to take ages to settle you back to sleep," she tells Kelly.

"I don't remember much of that," Kelly admits, "but I still have Sandy."

"Sandy?" Gibbs asks.

"The bear," Kelly replies.

"Ms. Mills, do you remember anything about her adoption or had you any role in organising it?" Gibbs wonders.

"Well, I had no direct involvement, but I remember hearing that a family had been found for her, quite soon after she had been admitted. I remember thinking how odd it was for such arrangements to have been made so quickly," she tells him.

"Really?" Kelly exclaims.

"Yes, you see, I don't remember anyone from the Department of Child Services visiting you or any assessments being carried out. Mind you I wouldn't have been there all of the time but would have expected to have come across someone from the Department on one of their visits. I did question the hastiness of the adoption and was told that because the child was from a military family, the military were handling it. It was made pretty clear to me not to poke my nose in," she informs them.

Gibbs and Kelly look at each other, as Ms. Mills puts down a tray of tea and biscuits in front of them. Slowly their suspicions were being confirmed. They then asked Ms. Mills if she knew who was involved.

"I had my suspicions but couldn't prove anything. It got to the stage where I thought I was being paranoid so I stepped back. Dr. Maitland and Dr. Parkinson spent a lot of time with her. I found it strange because Dr. Parkinson was an E.R. doctor. I think he had treated you when you were admitted but by then you were no longer his patient," Elizabeth tells them.

"Dr. Maitland?" Gibbs asks, not recognising the name from any of the documents he had seen.

"He was an oncologist. He never treated Kelly, just accompanied Dr. Parkinson on his visits to her room. Very odd," she comments.

"I don't suppose you know where Dr. Maitland works now do you?" Gibbs asks wishfully.

"I'm sorry, no. He left later that same year. There were rumours, but I don't know how true they were," she tells them.

"What kind of rumours?" Kelly asks.

"He had some addiction problems. Some say he was self prescribing. As I said, I can't be sure if they were true or not," she apologises.

"You've been a great help," Gibbs says, thanking her as he gets up to leave. Kelly gives her a hug and thanks her for her kindness all those years ago.

As they're walking to the car, Kelly's cell phone rings.

"Uncle Don, hi!" she says sitting in to the passenger seat.

"I was just wondering if you were staying in town tonight. Maybe we could have dinner?" he enquires.

"Thanks, Uncle Don, but Agent Gibbs is anxious to get back tonight. Rain check?" Kelly asks.

"Sure. Some other time. Give my regards to your folks," he says as he bids farewell.

Gibbs and Kelly head back to town where they decide to grab coffee and something light to eat before the long drive back to Quantico.

Meanwhile, Donald Parkinson makes a call.

"They're leaving town tonight. Do what you gotta do. You've got the description of the car. Don't mess up!" he says threateningly as he ends the call.


	6. Chapter 6

As Gibbs and Kelly sit waiting for their food to be served, they discuss what they've discovered so far.

"Do you really think Uncle Don is involved?" Kelly asks.

"My gut tells me he knows more than he's admitting. All I have to do is prove it," Gibbs replies, as he looks up and thanks the waitress who just placed a plate in front of him.

"I don't know what to think," Kelly admits. "I feel like I've known him forever. I find it hard to believe he'd do anything that would hurt me."

"Well, the Stenson's are his friends. Back when this all happened, you were just a kid. It could just as easily have been another kid. I really don't think it would have mattered. They were just opportunistic."

"Alright, so what next? How do we prove all this?" she asks.

"We find Maitland," Gibbs announces, as if it was that simple.

"And how do we do that?" she wonders.

Gibbs takes out his cell phone and raises a finger to silence Kelly.

"McGee? I need you to trace a Dr. Thomas Maitland for me. He used to work at Bethesda Naval Hospital 16 years ago. You could start there. Call me back," he orders, before ending the call.

Kelly smiles and nods her approval. "I guess it helps having friends in high places."

Gibbs grins across the table toward her and then tucks into his burger and fries. The pair finish their meal and prepare for their journey back. Kelly purchases some gum and a bottle of water before joining Gibbs who is already in the car. It's getting dark and the temperatures are dropping sharply.

The first leg of their journey brings them up a mountain road. As they gain altitude, sleet begins to fall, making driving conditions treacherous. Because of this, Gibbs is deliberately taking his time. About an hour into their journey, Gibbs notices headlights through his rear view mirror. The vehicle seemed to be travelling too fast, Gibbs thought, considering the conditions. It wasn't long before the vehicle was right up behind them. His proximity was making Gibbs uncomfortable. Then his cell phone rings. It was McGee. He pressed handsfree on the phone and answered the call.

"Hey Boss. I've traced your Dr. Maitland to Philadelphia. He's been living there for about 10 years. I've checked and it doesn't look like he has a licence to practice medicine anymore," McGee begins to tell him.

"What is this guy playing at?" Gibbs shouts, interrupting McGee.

The car behind has pulled seriously close to theirs and was swerving from side to side. Kelly twists around in her seat to see.

"Who Maitland?" McGee asks.

"No, the jerk behind us," Gibbs replies with annoyance.

Gibbs notices the warning signs for the sharp bend in the road up ahead and slows down automatically. The car behind seems to drop away for a few seconds and then all of a sudden it speeds up and rams them from behind.

"Jesus!" Gibbs exclaims, grabbing the steering wheel firmly in an effort to maintain control of the car.

"What's going on, Boss?" McGee asks, wondering what was happening.

"Some idiot just bumped us," Gibbs tells him, checking his rear view mirror and not believing his eyes. "Shit, he's coming again," he shouts. "Hold on!" he warns Kelly, as he braces for the impact. The shunt is more forceful than the first one and Gibbs is horrified as he realises that he no longer controls the car. The edge of the road is coming up fast and he frantically swings from the steering wheel in an effort to avoid the inevitable.

He hears Kelly's screams as she realises they're going to crash. He can hear McGee shouting something from the other end of the phone. The brakes screech but are useless on the glassy road and they career sideways off the road and down a steep, tree lined embankment. Within seconds their car comes to a crushing stop as it hits the massive trunk of a spruce tree. Then there's silence, only broken by the hissing of the fractured car radiator.

-------------------------

"Boss! What happened? Boss, can you hear me?" McGee shouts down the phone. He gets no response. Then the line goes dead. He looks over at Tony and Ziva, who are by now craning their necks to see what all the commotion is about.

"Everything okay there, Probie?" Tony smirks.

"Eh, I'm not sure. I think Gibbs has just been involved in an accident," he tells them, his voice shaking.

"What makes you think that?" Ziva enquires.

"He's on his way back from Mansfield. I was telling him about this doctor he was asking about and he starts saying that someone had bumped their car. Next thing I hear a girl scream and brakes screeching. And now his phone's gone dead," Tim answers.

"That doesn't sound good," Tony admits. "Get on to the local LEO's and have them check the road. Can you triangulate his exact position from his cell phone?" Tony wonders.

"Not if it's been damaged or there's no signal. But I can find out where the last signal came from," McGee tells him.

"Get on it Probie," Tony orders as he walks past McGee's desk. "I'd better tell the Director," he says as he climbs the stairs, two at a time to MTAC.

----------------------------------

Kelly is the first to regain her senses following the impact. She pushes the deflating air bag away from her face and opens the passenger door. She unbuckles her seatbelt and stumbles out, shocked but relatively unhurt. She sits on the wet ground for a few seconds, trying to absorb what has just happened. It's dark and cold and she's shaking uncontrollably. Then she remembers Gibbs, who is still in the car. She calls out to him, but gets no response. She gets shakily back to her feet and peers back into the car. Seeing him motionless, for a split second she fears he's dead. The driver's window is smashed and Gibbs head is leaning against the tree trunk, blood covering that side of his face and soaking his shirt collar.

"Please, God, no!" she prays as she leans in though the passenger door and feels his neck for a pulse. Much to her relief, it's present and pretty strong. She speaks to him, hoping to bring him round.

"Agent Gibbs, can you hear me? Wake up, Agent Gibbs," she begs. There's no response. "Please Daddy, wake up," she pleads desperately. With that he begins to moan.

"That's it. Open your eyes for me," she encourages, gently stroking and touching his face.

"What? Where am …" he mumbles, confused and disoriented.

"We've had an accident," she tells him.

"Are you okay?" he manages to ask.

"Yeah, a bit shaky but I'll live. What about you? Are you hurt?" Kelly asks.

Gibbs takes inventory of his injuries. His first attempt to move results in pain shooting down his arm and up into his neck. He realises that his shoulder may be broken. His side of the car had absorbed all of the impact. The driver's door was now just twisted and jagged metal. As the pain from his shoulder subsides he becomes increasingly aware of a burning pain in his left thigh. He looks down to see a serrated piece of twisted metal embedded in his leg. The sight of the injury makes him feel weak, and he's not sure if he is going to pass out.

"Can you get out?" Kelly asks wishfully.

"You know, I think I'll wait for the paramedics, if that's okay?" Gibbs decides, a he becomes more aware of the situation.

"I'm not sure there's time," Kelly informs him.

"Why not?" Gibbs wonders, his voice strained.

"I can smell gasoline. I've checked and it's leaking from the gas tank. Because of the incline it's flowing towards the engine. If there's a spark the whole thing will go up. You really need to get out of there," she warns.

"I'm not sure I can. I think my shoulder's broken and I'm not sure about my leg," he tells her. "Get away from the car, Kelly. Please, it's too dangerous," Gibbs tells Kelly.

"Not without you," she says stubbornly.

"Do as I say, please," Gibbs begs.

"Not a chance. I was brought up in a Marine family. You should know we don't leave our guys behind," she says getting out of the passenger seat.

"Hold on, I've got an idea," Kelly shouts in to him. She runs to the rear door and opens it. "If you let the seat back down and I'll pull you out."

Gibbs stretches for the release lever with his good arm. The slightest movement results in black spots dancing before his eyes. He takes a deep breath and reaches the lever. Then the seat back drops and he screams out in agony at the sudden movement. Kelly starts sobbing, the sight of him in such agony terrifies her.

"C'mon, I've got you," she says, using all her strength to drag him out of the driver's seat. He grits his teeth in an attempt to staunch his screams. For Gibbs, the pain is unbearable as she puts her hands under both his shoulders and heaves. He is in such pain that the sensation of the metal tearing along the flesh of his thigh hardly registers. It doesn't take long for the pain to overcome him and he is grateful when oblivion descends.

_To be continued_


	7. Chapter 7

Kelly struggles to drag the dead weight of Gibbs limp body from the front to the rear seat of the car. It's just as well that he has passed out, she thinks, as she renews her efforts to get him out of the car. The smell of gasoline is getting stronger, she notices.

With one final heave she finally manages to extricate him from the car. She lies him on the wet ground for an instant so she can take a breath. The using all her strength she drags him a safe distance from the car. Sleet is still falling so she looks for a sheltered spot. There isn't much in the way of shelter. She places him under a tree which has thick foliage. She puts her ear to his chest and listens for breath sounds. His breathing is pretty steady and so she relaxes for an instant.

She sits looking at the car. She realises their coats are still inside and that they're going to need them. It's a very cold night and without hesitation she decides to risk going back to the wreck. Her bag and both their coats are on the back seat. She grabs them and sees the bottle of water she had purchased earlier that evening. Then running on adrenalin she decides to check out the trunk and see if there was anything they could use. She pops the trunk and is relieved to find a flashlight, a first aid kit and some NCIS standard issue wind breakers. She also pulls out two bullet proof vests and tosses them away from the car. She has emptied the trunk of its contents. She gathers everything into her arms and returns to the relative safety of the sheltered spot where Gibbs lay.

She sits down beside her father who remains unconscious. That's when she notices the first flicker of a flame from under the car. Very quickly the flames follow the gasoline trail to the gas tank. She braces herself for the inevitable explosion and places her body between the car and Gibbs to protect him. The car explodes sending bright orange flames leaping into the night sky. Kelly breathes a sigh of relief as she realises what a close it had been.

She turns her attention to the injured figure lying so still beside her. With the help of the flashlight, she examines the extent of his injuries. There are deep gashes to the left side of his face and scalp and a lot of lesser grazes to his face. No injuries to his torso were obvious. She shone the light down towards his legs. The left trouser leg was shredded and blood poured from an unseen wound. From the amount of blood, she knew she had to do something to try and stop the blood loss. She opens the first aid kit and uses the small scissors to cut away the torn material from the wound. She shines the torch again to see the extent of the wound and struggles not to vomit at the sight of ripped flesh. The wound ran from just above his knee to the top of his thigh. It was hard to be certain in the dim light but she was pretty certain she could see the white of bone within. It is still bleeding profusely. She knows her priority has to be to stop or at least slow the bleeding because she has no idea how long they would have to wait for help.

She removes her neck scarf and ties it tightly around Gibbs thigh as a make shift tourniquet. There are some adhesive bandages in the first aid kit but none large enough for the Gibbs' wound. She finds a bandage roll and a few pressure pad dressings and using a combination of both manages to pull each side of the wound together and cover the wound. She turns back and looks at the burning car, grateful for the extra light it was providing. She checks Gibbs neck for a pulse once again and is relieved to find it strong still. She couldn't help but touch his face again and tell him it was going to be alright. His skin felt cold and clammy. As she feels his forehead, he wakes with a start. His first attempt to sit up is quickly halted as the pain from his shoulder blasts him back to reality.

"Easy," Kelly says, placing her hand behind his neck to stop his head dropping suddenly to the ground.

"How'd I get here?" Gibbs asks, as Kelly gently lays his head back on the ground.

"I dragged you," Kelly informs him as a matter of fact. "Just as well you passed out though."

Gibbs managed to give a smile in agreement, thankful for small mercies.

"The car?" Gibbs asks.

"Smouldering nicely," she jokes, trying to make light of their situation.

"Great. Jen's gonna kill me," Gibbs replies trying to join in.

"I've tried calling for help but I've no cell phone coverage down here," Kelly tells him, her expression changing. "I was going to climb back up to the road and see if there's a signal up there."

Gibbs realised that they had no choice, although he clung to the hope that McGee had realised what had happened and has a search underway already.

"Be careful," he warns, as she grabs the flashlight to begin her climb.

"You stay put," she orders vehemently. "I've spent ages trying to patch up your leg and I don't want you setting off the bleeding again," she says putting his coat over him.

"Yes, Ma'am!" he replies as he watches his daughter start to climb the embankment. The road is only about 25 meters above them but the incline is steep and slippery. It helps that she is nimble and athletic and it's not long before she finds herself standing on the road at the sharp bend, looking in both directions, hoping to see headlights coming. To her disappointment, the road is deserted.

She checks her cell phone and curses the lack of coverage. She cries tears of frustration when she realises she cannot call for help for her father. Reluctant to leave him alone for much longer, she decides to try and leave some signal for passing traffic that something is wrong. She uses one of the NCIS wind breakers and ties it around one the warning signs on the road, with the white NCIS print obvious to any passing traffic. Realising that there's little else she can do, she decides to returns to the accident site.

----------------------

Meanwhile, back at the Navy Yard, Tony saunters into MTAC and sits down beside Director Shepard.

"Agent DiNozzo?" Jan says, surprised to see him there. "What can I do for you?" she asks curiously.

"I just wanted to fill you in on what's happening," he tells her.

"On the Willis' case? Have you made a breakthrough?" she enquires.

"No, Ma'am," Tony replies.

"Well what is it, DiNozzo? I'm expecting a link with the MOD any minute now," she says, hoping he'll get to the point.

"It's Gibbs, Director. We think that he's been involved in an accident," he explains.

Jenny turns and looks into his face, trying to gauge his concern.

"Oh, God! How bad?" she asks.

"We're not sure exactly. McGee was on the phone to him when he was driving back from Mansfield. McGee heard what sounded like tyres screeching and screams and then his phone went dead. We've been trying to reach him but can't. We've contacted the locals and asked them to check the road but we don't really know where Gibbs was and it's at least a 3 hour drive between here and Mansfield," DiNozzo informs her.

"Can McGee narrow down the search by tracing the phone?" Jen asks.

"He's working on it now."

"Okay, Tony," Jen sighs, "Keep me informed," she asks, trying not to seem too concerned about her lead agent, as she sees the link come up on the screen in front of them.

Tony knows he's not needed there, excuses himself and returns to the bullpen.

"Anything, Probie?" he asks, leaning suddenly over Tim's desk, causing him to jump.

"I can't get an accurate trace. I have narrowed down which tower it pinged from last. It was here," he says pointing to a map on his screen, about 60 miles the Washington side of Mansfield.

"Okay, then! Ziva! Local LEO's, get them rolling," he orders.

"Already on it," Ziva responds efficiently.

-----------------------

Back at the scene of the accident, Gibbs is struggling to stay awake. His military training has instilled in him the importance of staying awake when it comes to survival. He is shivering uncontrollably, unsure whether it is the cold November air to blame or whether he is going into shock. He suspects the latter. He gazes up through the branches of the tree, under which he is sheltering. It's a clear starry night, the half moon offering some morsel of natural light. It's going to get much colder, he surmises. He is so tired. His head is pounding. He cannot help but close his eyes, just for a few minutes.

Just then he is jolted out of his slumber by the sound of gravel and twigs grating and cursing coming from further up the incline. Must be Kelly, he presumes. She is on her way back down the embankment a little quicker than she had anticipated. She had lost her footing on the unstable surface and slid down most of the embankment on her backside. Once she manages to stop, she gets to her feet muttering several expletives as she does so. She tries to brush the mud from her clothes.

"Are you alright?" Gibbs asks, painfully trying to stifle a snigger.

"Yeah, fine!" she says, a little mortified if truth be told. "Hey, it's not that funny."

"I'm sorry, I not laughing at you falling. It's just, in all my years, I've never heard such language from a young lady before," she admits.

"Yeah? Well, growing up on base, I learnt from the best," she tells him, as she kneels down beside him. "So, how are you doing?" she asks, knowing right well that he won't answer truthfully.

"Not bad, considering. I don't suppose the cavalry has arrived yet?" he asks, already knowing the reply.

"Afraid not. It could be a while. There's not much sign of life on the road," she admits.

Gibbs closes his eyes and takes a deep breath as he tries to stave off the nausea that consumes him. Kelly notices the change in his breathing. He must be in a lot of pain, she presumes. She rummages in the first aid kit and finds a packet of over the counter pain killers.

"Here," she says offering him a couple of tablets, "They probably won't help much, but I guess it's better than nothing."

She gently places her hand behind his head and raises it slightly so that he can take a drink from the water bottle. He swallows the pills, hoping they'll dull the pain, even slightly.

"Do you want me to try and immobilise your arm? It might help with the pain," Kelly advises.

"You can try if you want. Do you know how?" Gibbs wonders, not really wanting to subject himself to much more pain.

"We covered sports injuries in college. I just need to find something to immobilise it with," she tells him. She roots through the bits and pieces that she salvaged from the wreck before it went up in flames. She uses the second wind breaker and fashions a make-shift sling and uses the belt from her jeans, joined to Gibbs belt and secures it around his chest and arm. It was the best she could manage. Gibbs is relieved when she finishes moving him and Kelly is apologising profusely for hurting him as she tightens the sling. Gibbs rolls his head back and closes his eyes, relieved that the pain has subsided for now.

"That's okay," he croaks. "Thanks."

"You're shaking like a leaf," Kelly notices.

"It's freezing," Gibbs answers weakly. Kelly pulls his coat up over his chest and shoulders. He closes his eyes and slips into an exhaustion induced sleep.

Kelly walks over to the smouldering car. There are still a few flames flickering so she decides to try and use them to make a fire close to where Gibbs was sleeping. She took the flashlight and found the driest of the twigs and grass that she could find and made a base for a fire. There wasn't much that was dry so she used the scissors to cut some of her long hair to use as kindling. She scraped some moss and bark from some of the larger trees. Then she tore a strip of cloth from her blouse and soaked it in some of the alcohol antiseptic from the first aid kit. She tied it onto a large stick she had found. She prayed this would work as she reached into the smouldering vehicle with the torch. She jumps back initially as she burns her hand on the still red hot chassis. That was clever, she thinks as she reaches back into the car to reach the dwindling flame. She wills the cloth to catch and cannot help but cheer as her perseverance pays off and the cloth ignites. She carefully protects the precious flame as she walks carefully back over to where Gibbs lay.

She manages to start a small fire and tends to it diligently until it eventually becomes a more convincing effort. Soon she has a nice little campfire underway. Now all I need are marshmallows, she thinks to herself as she extends her hands towards the flames. She settles back and watches her father. He seems to be breathing alright, she thinks, as she watches his breath rise in the frosty air.

She shines the flashlight on his leg, to check it. The bandage she had fashioned is already soaked through she notices. She checks her watch. It has been almost 2 hours since the accident. Why hadn't anyone come? Surely someone should be looking for them. What was taking them so long?

_More to come so hang in there._


	8. Chapter 8

Back at NCIS headquarters, Director Shepard arrives in the bullpen, her presence no longer required in MTAC. She approaches McGee's desk with determination.

"Have you heard anything?" she asks him.

"The local sheriff has sent a car out to retrace the route Gibbs would have taken," he begins to tell her.

"A car! One car!!" the director snaps angrily.

"Eh, yes Ma'am. It's a small local force and it's all they could spare," McGee tries to defend the small scale search.

"Well, it's not good enough, McGee! One of my agents is missing and all they can spare is one deputy?" she rants. McGee is unsure whether the director was expecting an answer or whether her question was rhetorical. He chooses to stay silent. He throws a glance towards Tony for support and is surprised when Tony actually goes to bat for him.

"Director, we do realise the urgency of the situation, but right now we're doing everything we can from here. We just have to be patient," he tells her calmly.

She looks at him and realises that he's right. But this was Jethro and no matter what their history was, she would always care for him in a more than professional way, and not knowing his fate was driving her insane.

----------------

The cold night air is starting to chill Kelly to the bone. While her fire offers a morsel of warmth, it's no way large enough to provide a comforting heat. As she blows into her hands, she looks up into the clear night sky. Then she thinks she sees flashing blue and red lights. It takes a few seconds to register that they're coming from the road above. Next she hears the crunching of gravel above and sees the high beam of a flashlight slice through the darkness. She jumps to her feet.

"Down here!" she shouts for all she's worth. "Help us, we're down here."

"I can hear you Ma'am," a husky male voice replies. "Are you hurt?"

"I'm okay, but my Dad's hurt. We'll need an ambulance," she shouts back, as she kneels beside Gibbs and squeezes his good shoulder to wake him.

"Hey, wake up. We've been found," she says excitedly as she tries to rouse Gibbs. He moans a little and his eyelids flutter but he fails to come around. Kelly is worried by his lack of response but tries not to panic. Help will be here soon she keeps reminding herself. She sits by his head and strokes his cheek with the back of her hand and waits. He's so cold, she notices. "Hold on," she wills him. " Just hold on."

Kelly is talking to Gibb when a deep voice interrputs and startles her. It's the police officer. He had made it down the embankment without making a sound.

"How bad is he?" he enquires in a commanding tone.

"I don't really know. He was conscious up to a short time ago but I can't wake him now," she answers, looking up into his warm eyes. She is glad to see that he had the presence of mind to bring down a blanket from the car as well. He hands it to her and she places it over Gibbs.

"I've radioed for the Air Ambulance. By road, it could take over an hour for an ambulance to get here and I figured you'd waited long enough," he tells her, smiling kindly. He removes his fur lined jacket and offers it to Kelly. She accepts it gratefully and pulls it tightly around her.

They wait together for about 15 minutes. During that time they talk about what happened. The deputy was impressed when Kelly told of her heroics extricating Gibbs from the car. She was a little embarrassed by the deputy's praise. He is so sweet she thought….and good looking. She asks him his name. He tells her his name was Eric Taylor and that he was originally from Dayton, Ohio. They talk but as they do Kelly is growing increasingly anxious about Gibbs, but Eric does his best to reassure her and keep her calm.

It isn't long before they hear the helicopter's rotors. The deputy makes his way back up the embankment so he can signal exactly where they were. The Air Ambulance lands on the road way, not far from the deputy's car. Two crew members disembark and the deputy updates them on the injuries of the victims. They grab a back board and some ropes and make their way down to Kelly and Gibbs. They carefully examine Gibbs, checking him for back and neck injuries before placing a neck brace on him as a precaution. They secure him to the back board and begin to stretcher him up the slope, with the aid of the ropes. All the while, he remains unconscious. Kelly kicks out her fire, before following them up to the waiting helicopter. She bids goodbye to Eric and thanks him, handing him back his coat, before climbing on board. Soon they are airborne and on their way to Mansfield County Hospital.

--------------------

"DiNozzo!" Tony says, answering his phone. "Where?" he asks, listening intently, his expression unfaltering. "Which hospital? Thanks," he says before hanging up. "They've found the boss," he announces to his colleagues. "You were right McGeek, he has been in an accident. He's been taken to Mansfield County Hospital," he informs them.

"Oh no, poor Gibbs," Abby whines, he features twisted with worry.

"What's his condition?" Ziva asks impatiently.

"I don't really know. That was the sheriff's department. They couldn't tell me much, only that he was injured and that his daughter was unhurt," Tony replies.

"His daughter?" McGee says in dismay. Abby becomes sheepish all of a sudden and it doesn't go unnoticed by the team.

"That's what they said," Tony says, noticing Abby's change in demeanour. "Abby? What are you not telling us?" Tony asks.

"I promised Gibbs I wouldn't say anything about his daughter," Abby says, before regretting opening her mouth. "Damn Tony! Now look what you made me do. I promised Gibbs," she rambles.

"He has another daughter? The sly fox," Ziva says quietly.

"He didn't know," Abby blurts out before putting her hand over her own mouth. "I really have to get back to my lab," she announces, escaping from any more questions.

"Strange," Tony quips, shaking his head. "I'd better tell the Director the news. Will you let Ducky know?" he asks McGee.

"Sure," comes the reply.

------------------------

At the Emergency Room, Kelly stands helplessly by as the staff tend to her father.

"Why won't he wake up?" she asks anyone who'll listen.

"We're trying to find that out at the moment. We're doing some tests and won't know anything for a while. Why don't you wait outside and we'll come get you soon," a nurse advises, guiding her out of the Trauma Room to a waiting area.

Kelly waits impatiently for a half hour before a doctor approaches her.

"Ms. Gibbs?" he asks

"Stenson, eh Gibbs. Yes," she stammers. "How is he?"

"He's still unconscious, but the CT scan shows no sub-dural bleeding and no skull fracture. He did take quite a crack to the head and there is some degree of swelling but that's only to be expected. He's also slightly hypothermic, so we're warming him up with a warm saline infusion. X-rays also confirm a fracture to the glenoid bone, the shoulder socket. He'll require surgery to stabilise that. As you saw, his leg is a mess but at least there is no fracture. There is massive tissue damage so we'll get plastics and vascular to have a look at it while he's in surgery. He'll be sent up to theatre in the next hour or so. He's stable at the moment and I'd expect him to make a full recovery," the doctor informs her.

"Oh, that's great news. Can I see him?" she asks.

"Sure. You can sit with him, until they take him up," the doctor says, as he directs her into the Trauma Room once more.

Gibbs looks peaceful lying there on the gurney. His face has been cleaned up and dressings applied to the lacerations. He is covered up to his neck by several blankets in order to warm him up. He is on oxygen via a nasal cannula and is connected to a heart monitor and a drip. She wills him to open his eyes, because she only then will she be convinced that he's going to be okay. She needs to see those eyes open.

--------------------

Up in the Directors Office, back at the Navy Yard, Tony is filling Jen in on the latest developments, including the mention of Gibbs having a daughter.

"The sheriff must have been mistaken, right? Gibbs only had one daughter I thought. I wonder who the girl in the car is then, the old dog!?" Tony asks hoping that Jen has some gossip to share.

"The sheriff wasn't mistaken, Tony. The young woman is Jethro's daughter. It's Kelly," she states, deciding he needed to know.

Tony thinks he has mis-heard and looks dumbfounded at the Director.

"Kelly? Really?" he questions the statement. "He had two daughters called Kelly? Weird," he quips.

"No, Tony. It's Kelly, _the_ Kelly! She didn't died in the accident. He only found out a couple of days ago. That's why he was in Mansfield, he was looking into those involved in her illegal adoption," Jen informs him.

"Hold on! So, you're telling me that Gibbs' daughter, who he thought was dead, isn't dead?" Tony asks, realising the magnitude of the situation. "Woah!"

Jen just nods slowly.

"So that's what Abby was avoiding telling us," Tony says, as Abby's carry on starts to make sense.

"I need to get to the hospital in Mansfield," Jen announces, changing the subject.

"Connie," she says, pressing her intercom button. "Can you check and see how soon a plane would be available to fly to Mansfield, Ohio. Tell them it's an emergency," she tells her secretary. She was anxious to get to the hospital. She was extremely concerned about Jethro, she couldn't help it. Old habits die hard.

_Hang on in there. This is going somewhere. I'll try and get more chapters up ASAP._


	9. Chapter 9

In a waiting area at Mansfield County Hospital, Kelly is waiting anxiously for news of Gibbs. He had been moved up to surgery over two hours ago and she still hasn't heard anything. She really hopes everything is alright. It has only just occurred to her that she hadn't even contacted the Stenson's to tell them about the accident. She finds a pay phone and makes a short call. They were terribly concerned for their daughter and wanted to drive straight up to Mansfield that night. Kelly somehow managed to convince them that she was okay and that it would be safer if they waited until morning. She returns to the waiting area and eventually dozes off on a sofa. She is exhausted.

The arrival of a number of other people into the waiting area at around 2.30am disturbs her and she sits up sleepily. She recognises one of them as the agent from NCIS headquarters whom she had met briefly a few days ago. It's Tony. He smiles flirtatiously as he recognises her also and switches on the old DiNozzo charm.

"Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo," he says, introducing himself to her immediately.

"Hi, Kelly Stenson," she replies, shaking his hand.

"Gibbs' daughter, right?" he nods, as if he had known all along.

"Yeah," she answers, a little embarrassed.

"This is NCIS Director Shepard and Agent Ziva David," he says, indicating towards the red haired woman standing behind him and the younger dark haired agent. They shake hands also.

"Hi, so how is Jethro doing?" the Director asks the retiring young woman.

"He's in surgery," she tells them. She notices the concern on the older woman's face at this news. "They tell me it's not too serious. His shoulder's broken and they need to operate on it. They'll also close up his leg wound. The doctor told me that he has some swelling on the brain but they're not overly concerned because there's no skull fracture or something like that," she says trying to explain what the doctor's had told her earlier in the evening.

"He'll be fine," Jen says, trying to reassure Kelly.

"Can you remember anything about the accident?" Tony asks, switching to agent mode.

"What accident? It wasn't an accident," she corrects him immediately. "Some lunatic ran us off the road."

"Did you get a look at the vehicle?" Ziva asks in her usual curt manner.

"It was dark. All I saw were the headlights," she tells her.

"You must have seen something! Was it a sedan, an SUV, the colour, make?" Ziva asks impatiently.

"I don't know," Kelly replies in frustration. "It could've been a pick up or and SUV I guess. It was higher up than we were. It was a light colour, white or silver maybe. I'm sorry, I can't remember. It all happened so fast," she says, beginning to cry.

"It's okay," Jen says, sitting beside her and putting a comforting arm around her. "Agent David, I think we can do this later," Jen says, rebuking Ziva's approach.

With that, the doors of the relatives room opens and in walks a very serious looking surgeon sporting light blue scrubs. Kelly jumps to her feet immediately.

"How is he?" she asks eagerly.

"He's stable and doing fine," the Doctor reassures her.

"Thank God," she says with relief, letting go of the breath she was holding.

"We've stabilised the shoulder. It will be painful but should heal over time. The vascular surgeons did a good job on his leg. He had lost a lot of blood from that injury. If you hadn't applied that tourniquet, he may not have made it as far as the hospital. You probably saved his life," he tells her.

"And the head injury?" Kelly asks, ignoring the praise he was heaping on her.

"With the exception of a cracking headache when he wakes, he should suffer no ill effects. We'll keep a close eye on him for the next few days just to be on the safe side," he explains.

"Can I see him?" Kelly asks.

"He's in recovery at the moment. I'll send someone to get you when he's settled into his room," the doctors replies and then turns to leave the room.

"You see. I told you he was as tough as old shoes," Ziva says, punching Tony in the arm.

"Boots," he corrects her, pulling out of reach and rubbing his arm. "He's as tough as old boots."

"Whatever. I told you he would be fine," Ziva reminds him.

"I never doubted it for a minute," Tony replies.

Jen and Kelly smile at each other amused by the pair's antics.

"Why don't you contact the sheriff and see if he has any leads regarding the accident," the Director suggests to the two agents.

"On it, Jen… I mean Director," Tony barks, nudging Ziva out the door.

Not long after the two agents leave the waiting room, a young nurse asks Jen and Kelly to follow her and she shows them to Room 211 where Gibbs has been placed. Kelly notices Jen's sharp intake of breath as she is shocked by the initial sight of Gibbs in the bed. He is unconscious, in a semi-sitting position as the back of the hospital bed is raised. One side of his face is a myriad of cuts, bruises and sutures. The sight catches her off guard.

"It looks worse than it is," the nurse tells her, seeing the shock on her face. "He should be out for another couple of hours at least, but you can sit with him if you want."

"Thanks," Kelly says, pulling a chair close to the side of the bed. She takes hold of Gibbs' uninjured hand and squeezes gently, hoping he'll realise that she's there. Jen watches the touching scene from a distance, herself longing to be the one holding his hand. He looks peaceful though, she thinks. At least he doesn't look like he's in any pain.

"I couldn't bear it if I lost you again," Kelly says softly to Gibbs.

"He's going to be fine," Jen says reassuringly. "He's come out of worse scrapes than this."

The two women sit with Gibbs for the rest of the night. By early morning both women are exhausted. Kelly is sleeping in the chair, her head resting on Gibbs bedside. Jen stands up to stretch her legs and it's then that she notices those familiar blue eyes scanning the room. He sees her and smiles weakly.

"Hey, Jen," he whispers.

"Jethro, welcome back," she says softly, not wanting to wake Kelly.

Jethro raises his hand and gently strokes the sleeping girl's hair.

"She's been so worried about you, we all have," Jen informs him. "She hasn't left you side since you were brought in."

Gibbs looks at his daughter and lets his hand rest on the back of her head.

"How do you feel?" Jen asks.

"Sore. Tired," he answers, as Kelly begins to stir. She sits up and is delighted to see Gibbs is awake.

"Dad, you're awake!" she exclaims, taking his hand and holding on tightly. Gibbs heart leaps at being called Dad for the first time in over 16 years. He had never expected to be called that ever again. He gives her hand a squeeze of approval.

"How do you feel?" she asks anxiously.

"A little tired, but okay," he tells her.

"The doctor says you'll be fine. Your shoulder will heal and you'll have to stay off that leg for a while, but you're gonna be fine," she tells him.

"Thanks to you," Gibbs reminds her. Kelly blushes. "You did really good out there, kid," he says proudly. She leans over and hugs him.

"You should probably try and get some rest, Kelly. The agency has reserved a few rooms at the hotel in the centre of town. Why don't you go and get something to eat and some sleep. I'll stay here with Jethro," Jen advises.

"I'm fine, really," Kelly replies, reluctant to leave her father's side.

"She's right, Kel. To be honest, you look worse than I feel," Gibbs tells her, looking at her bloodstained clothes and scruffy hair.

"Oh, great! Thanks!" she says, feigning offence.

"I'll still be here when you get back," Gibbs promises. Eventually, Kelly relents and decides to go to the hotel. Jen and Gibbs are left together in the room. She takes the opportunity to question Gibbs about what had happened.

"Can you remember anything about last night?" she asks.

"It's all a bit hazy," he admits. "I remember leaving the diner and the drive. The weather was bad. We went off the road, didn't we?" he asks her.

"Yes, Jethro. Do you remember being struck by another vehicle?" Jen wonders.

"Not really," Gibbs replies somewhat frustrated. "My head hurts, it's just….." he begins, getting agitated.

"Relax, Jethro. It's okay. It'll come back," Jen tells him, taking up position in the chair vacated by Kelly. She pats his hand. "You should rest."

Gibbs doesn't argue. The jack hammers in his head are pounding and he knows the only relief he'll get is if he closes his eyes. Sleep follows quickly.

When he wakes, Jen is talking to DiNozzo over by the window. He watches them, unnoticed for a while, until Jen senses that he's watching them.

"Sorry, Jen, I must have nodded off," he says apologetically.

"Yes you did, over 4 hours ago, Jethro," she informs him.

"Heh hey, Boss," Tony hollers over. "You look like sh….I mean good, Boss," he says, tripping up over his own tongue.

"What are you doing here, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asks in his usual curt fashion.

"Had to be sure you were okay, Boss," comes the reply.

"So, you've solved the Willis case then?" Gibbs asks, already knowing the answer.

"Well, you see, it's just… , not yet, Boss," Tony finally admits, realising there's no point even trying to make excuses.

Gibbs raises his eyebrows in a 'don't make me repeat myself' type expression. Tony decides to explain his reasons for being there.

"We know that your accident wasn't an accident, Boss. So I just presumed that you'd want your best man up here to investigate," Tony explains.

Gibbs cannot help but smile. Tony certainly was one of a kind. No matter what anyone thought, he was one hell of an agent, oozing with confidence and charm. In fact, Gibbs had no doubt that Tony could charm his way out of practically any predicament.

"He's right, Jethro," Jen agrees as she approaches the bed. Gibbs is shifting awkwardly in an effort to sit more upright. Jen places another pillow behind his back to help him get more comfortable.

"Someone doesn't want you digging any deeper into the past," she tells him. "So much so, that they tried to kill you and when someone tries to harm one of my agents, Jethro, I'll damn well assign a team or several teams if necessary," she pontificates.

Gibbs knew she was right, and knowing Jen, he knew it best not to argue.

"Can you remember anything that might help?" she asks officiously. "Has anything come back to you?"

Gibbs leaned his head back on the pillows and looks up toward the ceiling, willing himself to remember. He fills Jen and Tony in on what he could remember of the day of the accident, the people he spoke to and what he had found out. He suggested that DiNozzo start with the people he and Kelly spoke to. He also tells them that McGee was trying to trace another doctor, whose name he couldn't recall.

"I think I should speak to Kelly," Tony suggests.

"Yeah, hopefully she'll be of more help," Gibbs agrees, knowing his recollection of events was still sketchy.

"I'm trying to arrange for the wreckage to be sent to our lab so Abby can examine it," Jen tells Gibbs.

"Ooh, she won't be impressed. The car went up in smoke, you know," Gibbs informs her. "She won't have much to work with."

"I know, but if anyone can find evidence, Abby can," Jen says confidently.

As they talk, a pretty nurse enters the room to check on Gibbs. She greets him with a friendly smile and asks if he's in any discomfort. He tells her that he feels fine. While the young lady is fixing Gibbs pillows and checking his obs, Tony is not very subtly checking out her vital statistics and grinning like a Cheshire cat. His head leans to one side as he follows her with his eyes as she leaves the room.

"Would you ….." Gibbs begins to say.

"Oh, I would, Boss," Tony interrupts. "I sure would," he says, still leering after the nurse.

"DiNozzo!" Gibbs roars. Tony snaps out of his stupor immediately.

"Sorry, Boss," he answers.

"I was going to say, would you mind asking Kelly to come by later, when you're talking to her," Gibbs asks with a resigned sigh.

"Of course you were, Boss. And I will. No problem, Boss. Probably should go," DiNozzo says, theatrically escaping from the embarrassment.

Jen and Gibbs share a laugh at DiNozzo's expense after he has left the room.


	10. Chapter 10

Tony makes his way to the hotel where Kelly was staying, not before searching the corridors of the hospital for the hot nurse who had visited Gibbs room. To his disappointment, he couldn't find her. He gets Kelly's room number from the check in desk and makes his way up to the 3rd floor. He knocks on the door of Room 327.

"Who is it?" Kelly shouts from the other side.

"Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo, NCIS," Tony replies. "Your father sent me."

The door opened and Kelly invites him in. She is dressed in a white hotel robe, her wet hair straggling down her back. She is obviously not long out of the shower. The bed clothes ware tossed and there's a room service tray on the floor.

"Sorry for the mess. I'm not long awake," she says, excusing the condition of the room.

"Oh, that's fine. You should see my place," Tony grins.

"Have you seen my Dad? Is he okay?" she asks.

"He's awake and giving orders. Back to his old self, from what I can see," Tony tells her reassuringly.

"You know, I still can't believe all this has happened," Kelly admits.

"I can imagine. What a few days, eh?" Tony responds.

"You can say that again. This day last week, as far as I knew, Leroy Jethro Gibbs was dead. Now we're reunited and someone's tried to kill us," she says disbelievingly.

"Yeah, about that," Tony starts before questioning her about the events of the previous day.

Kelly proceeds to tell Tony about her uncle, Nurse Mills, the drive back, the accident and the rescue in as much detail as she could recall. She relaxes in Tony's company because he makes her feel like she is talking to a friend and not to an agent. After he has finished the official questions, Tony can't resist trying to find out the story behind her adoption and how she found Gibbs. He is fascinated by the complexities and tragedies she had experienced in her life. Maybe it was the mystery and intrigue that surrounded her very existence that made him feel drawn to her. They spend hours together talking.

"Crap! Look at the time," Tony says looking at his watch. "Your Dad's gonna kill me. He asked that I get you over to see him. That was hours ago. He'll think that I forgot."

Kelly cannot help but laugh at how funny he looks at that very moment, flustered and hot around the collar, searching for his cell phone and his coat.

"Hold on a minute and I'll get dressed," she says, grabbing her freshly laundered jeans and an NCIS sweatshirt that Jen had loaned her. She dresses quickly in the bathroom and then accompanies Tony back to the hospital.

It's almost midday when they get to the hospital. Gibbs is sitting up and watching t.v. when they enter. Kelly rushes straight over and hugs her father. Gibbs winces slightly but gladly receives her affections.

"You look better," Kelly lies, looking into is battered and bruised face.

"So do you," Gibbs replies. "Did you manage to get any sleep?"

"A little. My mind just kept racing, you know, with the accident and all," she says, making excuses.

As they chat, Tony's cell phone rings.

"Sorry, I'll take it outside," he says, leaving the room.

"Yeah, McGee?" he answers.

"Tony, I was talking to the director. Gibbs had asked me to trace a Dr. Thomas Maitland for him. I haven't had much luck really. It seems he was struck off the medical register years ago. He worked in a stationery warehouse in Virginia and his last known address was Dayton, Ohio. He had an Ohio drivers licence so I can send you over the DMV photo," McGee explains.

"Nice work Probie. I need you to check out some phone records for me too. I'll send you the details in a few minutes," Tony tells him.

"Good," McGee replies. "Hey, Tony, how's Gibbs?"

"He's gonna be laid up for a while, but he's doing okay. That Kelly is one hot babe though," he brags to the younger agent.

"Better not let Gibbs hear you saying that, Tony," McGee jests.

"You think I have a death wish?" Tony replies quite seriously. "Now can you patch me through to Abby's lab?"

"I could, but she's not there," McGee informs him.

"Where is she?" Tony enquires.

"She left for Mansfield this morning," McGee tells him.

"She's on her way up here?" Tony says a little surprised.

"I told her not to, but you know Abby, she just had to see Gibbs," McGee replies.

"Do you think the hearse will make it all this way?" DiNozzo asks.

"Oh, she's not driving, Tony, Ducky is," McGee informs him.

"Oh great. Gibbs is really gonna love this," Tony says sarcastically. "Anyway, Probie, back to work!"

Tony meets Jen on the corridor outside Gibbs room and tells her that Kelly is in with Gibbs. Jen decides to go back to the hotel and get some rest. It had been a long night. Tony decides to catch up with Ziva and meets her down at the Sheriff's office. They exchange information that they have each gathered and then decide to go for lunch.

Gibbs and Kelly watch quiz shows on t.v. for the afternoon. They are enjoying each others company when they have an unexpected visitor.

"Uncle Don!" Kelly exclaims when Dr. Parkinson enters the hospital room. "What are you doing here?"

"I was talking to your parents and they told me about the accident. You should have called me," he tells her.

"I'm sorry, with so much going on I wasn't thinking straight," she apologises.

Gibbs watches the doctor very closely, in no way attempting to hide his displeasure at Parkinson's presence. The doctor notices his steely glare.

"I'm sorry Agent Gibbs, how rude of me not to ask how you are?" he says insincerely.

"I'll be fine," is all Gibbs utters.

The doctor walks to the foot of the bed and takes Gibbs chart in his hands and examines it. Gibbs clears his throat loudly, displaying his displeasure.

"Oooh, fractured glenoid, that's gotta hurt," the doctor comments. "I see they're adequately medicating you for the pain. That should help."

Gibbs feigns a smile but on Kelly's account, refrains from telling the good doctor exactly what he thinks. Kelly is getting irritated by Gibbs' rudeness, oblivious to the efforts he is making not to speak his mind.

"Uncle Don, why don't you and I grab a bite to eat. I think Agent Gibbs is getting tired and needs to rest," she says giving Gibbs a dirty look. "He's a little cranky."

"Why not? Feel better soon, Agent Gibbs," Dr. Parkinson says as he holds the door open for Kelly.

"I'll be back later tonight. You try and rest," Kelly says to Gibbs, as she kisses him on the cheek.

"Sure. Enjoy dinner," he says, wishing she wasn't going with that man.

Once they've left, he realises how uncomfortable he is about Kelly going anywhere with that man. He calls for a nurse and asks to make a phone call. The nurse brings him in a phone and he immediately calls Jen. She is groggy when she answers the phone¸ obviously having been woken by the call. He asks her to find Kelly and Parkinson and keep an eye on them. She promises and hauls herself out of bed. Gibbs feels a little better knowing someone was looking out for his daughter. His eyelids are getting heavy now and he can no longer battle the tiredness. He allows himself to relax back into the pillows and is soon asleep.

It takes a while but eventually Jen finds the restaurant where Kelly and Parkinson are having dinner. It's only a couple of blocks from the hospital. She returns to her hire car and sits and watches through the window. At one stage Kelly excuses herself from the table and disappears from sight. Ladies room, Jen presumes. Seconds later, Parkinson is on his cell phone. He hangs up as soon as he notices Kelly returning. She watches them eat and once they've finished she observes Parkinson get up from the table and walk towards the door. He meets a guy, hands him something and returns to Kelly. The unidentified man leaves the bistro and walks smartly in the direction of the hospital, his head down and the hood of his jacket pulled up. Jen's gut tells her to follow the guy, but she had made a promise to Jethro to watch Kelly and she wouldn't let him down.

Tony and Ziva arrive in the hospital to see Gibbs but decide to stop at the cafeteria before going up to his room. They discuss the case a little more over coffee. She tells him that there was little evidence from the crash site, beside broken glass and skid marks. As they drink coffee and Tony tucks into a jelly doughnut, Tony's cell phone beeps. It's the DMV photo from McGee arriving. He shows it to Ziva and then continues to enjoy his doughnut in his usual vocal fashion.

---------------------

Outside Room 211, a man in a white lab coat looks suspiciously up and down the corridor before quietly entering the room. The room is empty except for the sleeping patient on the bed. The man approaches the patient with stealth, hoping not to wake him. The man freezes when the patient unexpectedly turns his head and opens his eyes.

"It's okay, Doc, I'm not asleep," Gibbs says groggily.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I was trying not to wake you," the visitor says, trying to cover his tracks.

"Don't worry, I was only resting my eyes," Gibbs tells him.

The doctor calmly takes a syringe out of his pocket. Gibbs finds this a little unusual, because it was usually the nurses who administered his medication, but he doesn't question the doctor.

"I'm just topping up your pain relief," the impostor lies.

"The nurse was just here and I already got my shot," Gibbs informs him.

"Oh, did I say pain relief? I'm sorry I meant antibiotic," he says backtracking.

He takes hold of Gibbs IV and injects the contents of the syringe into the line. Gibbs suspicions grow. He realises that he hasn't seen this doctor before and given the way he was dressed under the white coat he decides that something is amiss. With his injured limb he reaches as best he can and yanks the IV line from his right arm.

"You stupid….," the assailant says angrily thumping Gibbs in the face.

"Who the hell are you?" Gibbs shouts, as he twists and struggles to reach behind him and hit the emergency call button. His dizziness and blurred vision tells him that he didn't get the IV out in time and that whatever had been injected had reached his system.

The imposter pulls a pillow from under Gibbs' head and holds it over his face. Gibbs struggles valiantly against his assailant but in his weakened state fails to deflect the attack. Within seconds he is unconcious and struggles no more.


	11. Chapter 11

Gibbs attacker flees the room, leaving the pillow covering his victim's face. He almost knocks Ducky down as he and Abby step off the elevator onto the second floor.

"Good gracious, someone's in a hurry," Ducky comments, looking back at the hurried man. "Ah, here we are Abigail, Room 211," he says pausing outside the room. Abby rushes past him and bursts into the room anxious to surprise Gibbs. She stops suddenly as soon as she is inside the room and witnesses the scene in front of her. Someone is lying in the bed with a pillow over their face, the bed clothes tossed and obvious signs of a struggle.

"Gibbs?" she sobs meekly, afraid to approach the bed.

Ducky decides to move past her and only then realises what has upset Abby. He springs into action, pulling the pillow from Gibbs' face and hits the emergency button. Realising his friend is not breathing he automatically checks for a pulse. Finding a weak one, he pulls all the pillows from under Gibbs and lays him flat on the bed. Pinching Gibbs' nose he places his mouth over Gibbs' mouth and forces precious air into his lungs. He watches as Gibbs chest rise with each breath.

"Come on, Jethro, breath for me," he pleads.

Abby is still sobbing just inside the door when the crash team burst in.

"He's stopped breathing," Ducky explains to the team. They quickly take over artificial ventilation and Ducky retreats out of their way to let them work.

Ducky asks Abby to call Tony and Ziva. She takes out her cell and dials Tony's cell number but is unable to speak when he answers.

"Abby? Is that you? Abs?" Tony is shouting down the phone.

Ducky take the phone from Abby.

"Tony, it's Ducky. Where are you?" Ducky enquires urgently.

"In the hospital cafeteria. Where are you? What's wrong with Abby?" Tony wonders.

"It's Jethro. Someone's tried to suffocate him in his room," Ducky explains briefly.

"What?" Tony says in disbelief.

"I need you and Ziva to seal off the exits. I think he may still be in the hospital," Ducky advises before quickly decsribing the man who bumped into them on their way off the elevator.

"How's the Boss?" he asks with concern.

"Not good," Ducky replies seriously. "Not good at all."

After about five minutes, the emergency team have managed to get Gibbs breathing independently once again. However, his vital signs are causing concern. They are not responding as would be expected. His cardiac rate is still dangerously low. The doctor turns and asks Ducky what caused the respiratory failure. Ducky explains about how they had found him. As the two medical professionals talk, Abby slowly walks over to Gibbs and takes his hand. She notices that his IV line is out and that his arm is bleeding. Then she notices the syringe on the floor, just slightly under the bed.

"Did one of you drop this?" Abby asks the people around her. The nursing staff shake their heads.

"Sorry, my dear?" Ducky asks.

"I found this on the floor under Gibbs' bed. And his IV has been pulled out of his arm. I wonder did he try and stop someone injecting him with this," Abby guesses.

The two doctors look at each other.

"It could explain why his heart isn't responding as it should. He's bradycardic. It could be an opioid overdose," the doctor deducts, taking the syringe from Abby. "I need to get this to the lab immediately. Tell them to rush it," he says handing the syringe to one of the nurses. She takes the needle and disappears down the corridor running.

"You gotta do something," Abby pleads to the on call doctor. "We can't just wait."

Ducky approaches Abby and places his hands on her shoulders as a gesture of support. He knows how much Gibbs means to Abby. He has always looked out for her, been a second father to her. As he comforts her, the heart monitor recently attached to Gibbs' chest, starts alarming urgently.

"Damn!" the doctor curses. "He's going into VF. Charge the paddles," he says to the nurse standing nearest to the defibrillator. "You'll need to let go of his hand," he tells Abby. Abby is frozen in disbelief so Ducky removes her hand from Gibbs' hand. She shudders as the doctor shouts "clear" and administers the first charge into Gibbs. He pauses to check the monitor, hoping to see an improvement. Nothing.

"Charging 360. Clear!" he calls, as the second charge is administered. Gibb's body spasms as the charge bolts through him. Again the doctor watches the monitor.

"Normal sinus rhythm," he says, releasing the breath he was holding. All they could do now was wait for the lab results.

While all this is going on, Tony and Ziva are busy downstairs rounding up hospital security staff and attempting to seal off all exits. It's difficult because the description Ducky had given them was vague, to say the least. Mid-fifties, unkempt grey hair, white coat and denim jeans, was all Ducky could recall. As the security staff stop people from leaving, Tony and Ziva, with the help of a couple of local officers from the Sheriff's office, begin a floor by floor sweep of the hospital. They check the ID of each member of staff they meet and look for some form of identification from all visitors.

Gibbs' assailant, on the other hand was almost at the main exit of the hospital, when he noticed the flurry of security activity and realised that chances are, they were looking for him. Unnoticed, he makes a quick turnaround and heads for the basement. He was hoping they hadn't managed to secure that yet. The morgue and pathology was based down there and he was in luck. An undertaker was signing out a body and he realises that this is an opportunity too good to miss. As the undertaker finishes loading the body into the hearse in the loading bay, he attacks the undertaker. He punches and kicks him and leaves him bleeding on the ground. He steals the hearse and makes his getaway.

Security staff arrive on the scene just as the unfortunate undertaker is getting painfully to his feet. He explains to Tony and Ziva what had happened and he describes his vehicle and gives them the licence plate number. Tony contacts Jen first and explains what had just happened. She is still sitting on the main street outside the bistro, watching Parkinson and Kelly. He asks her to keep an eye out for the stolen hearse Ziva, in the meantime, is speaking with McGee and arranging for a BOLO to be put out on the vehicle.

----------------

Back in Room 211, the doctor is expressing his concern to Ducky.

"I don't like it. He's still bradycardic and he's starting to show signs of hypoxia. I really need to know what he's been given. I'll go and call the lab and see if they have any results yet," the doctor says anxiously. He leaves the room and makes the call from the nurse's station.

Ducky walks back over to his friends bedside. He is hugely concerned also, but does his best to hide it, for Abby's sake. Behind the oxygen mask covering Jethro's face, his friend is deathly pale. His lips are tinged blue. His physician's eye notices how Gibbs' chest is hardly rising at all as shallow breaths are taken. From experience, he knows the dangers of oxygen deprivation and that's what scares him most of all. They really had no idea how long Jethro had been without oxygen before they found him. He fears brain damage. He fears his friend might never wake up. He is brought out of his troubled thoughts by Abby's voice seeking reassurances.

"He is going to be okay, isn't he Ducky?" she says, trying to be positive.

"This is Jethro, we're talking about. Of course he is," he replies, not having the heart to break the truth to her.

Just then the doctor returns to the room invigorated.

"Fentanyl!" he announces. "An opioid, as we suspected. That's what's causing the arrythmias. An overdose can cause a sudden cardiac arrest. I suspect that Agent Gibbs managed to stop the full dose entering his blood stream otherwise we might have been too late. At least now we can treat it," he says confidently. "We should see a rapid improvement in his condition pretty soon."

"That's great," Abby says, hugging the doctor enthusiastically. "Did you hear that, Ducky? He's going to be fine."

Ducky smiles, reserving his enthusiasm until he sees his friend regain consciousness and suffer no ill effects from the oxygen deprivation.

**_NFA - Sorry for the delay in the updates. Next updates will be the final chapters...I promise._**


	12. Chapter 12

At the hospital, Ducky excuses himself from the room to make a call. He phones the director. She answers almost immediately, anxious for news of Gibbs.

"Ducky, tell me he's alright!" she begs.

"I really wish I could, Jennifer, but truth be told we won't know for sure until he regains consciousness," he tells her calmly. "We have no idea how long he was without oxygen before they resuscitated him. There's no way to tell what damage has been done."

"What are you telling me, Ducky?" Jen asks very worried at this stage.

"There may be damage to his brain as a result of oxygen deprivation," he informs her.

"Oh, God!" Jen says, stunned by what Dr. Mallard was telling her. This can't be happening to Jethro. Not now, especially after only finding Kelly again. As she is absorbing the news, and still talking to Ducky, she sees the black hearse passing straight by her. She can't believe it.

"Ducky, I gotta go. Tell Tony that the stolen hearse has just passed my position and I'm following it," she says with authority.

"I will. Be careful, my dear," Ducky says before she cuts him off. He immediately calls Tony and tells him exactly what Jen had told him. Ziva and Tony commandeer one of the security staff's cars and with Ziva at the wheel theyspeed towards Jen's last known position.

Meanwhile, Jen follows the hearse at a distance, not wanting to spook the suspect. The driver of the hearse pulls into a supermarket parking lot and calmly parks the hearse and walks to a silver Jeep Cherokee and gets in. He seems relaxed and makes a call from the jeep on his cell phone. He talks briefly and pulls out of the parking space and drives in the direction of Columbus, Jen notes from the directional signs. All the while, she remains two to three car lengths away, not letting him out of her sights. She is so deep in concentration that when her cell phone rings it startles her.

"DiNozzo here. Where are you now, Director?" he asks, trying to disguise his terror as Ziva overtakes another vehicle in her own inimitable, if not somewhat lethal fashion.

"We've just left the K-Mart parking lot and we're on the main road out of townin the directionofColumbus. He's switched cars and is now driving a silver Jeep Cherokee," she explains before calling the licence number to DiNozzo.

"We're coming up to the K-Mart now. By the way Ziva's driving we should be with you in two minutes, if we survive," Tony informs her, sarcastically, while glaring over at the agent in the driving seat. She looks smugly back at him before recklessly overtaking another car. Tony closes his eyes, waiting for the impact from the oncoming vehicle but in the end only hears car horns blaring. Jen hangs up and continues her pursuit of the suspect.

----------

Back at the bistro, Kelly and Dr. Parkinson are just finishing desert and coffee. As they chat, Parkinson's cell phone rings. He answers, listens intently and then hangs up. His expression has changed and Kelly notices this.

"I'm so sorry Kel. That was the office. There's an emergency, I have to leave. Why don't you stay and finish your desert and I'll settle the bill," he says as he stands up to leave.

"Oh, okay. I hope everything is alright. Thank you for dinner, I really enjoyed catching up," she replies appreciatively.

"I might see you tomorrow," Parkinson says as he leans down and kisses her cheek. He leaves hurriedly. Kelly finishes her desert and then decides to walk the few blocks back to the hospital.

As she approaches, she notices a number of police cars and officers outside the hospital and wonders what's going on. Sheis not stopped from entering the hospital soshe takes the elevator to the second floor and makes her way to her father's room. She enters, not expecting to find a number of people already there. She recognises Dr. Mallard from a few days ago back at NCIS headquarters. She doesn't recognise Abby but she smiles and acknowledges her all the same. Only then does she see her father, lying unresponsive on the bed, an oxygen mask covering his mouth and nose and monitors and IV's attached to him. He hadn't needed any of that when she left earlier. She realises that something had happened, something bad.

"What's going on?" she asks, her face pained with worry.

"Kelly. Wewere tryingto get hold of you," Ducky tells her.

"What's happened? What's wrong with him?" she pleads for an answer.

"There's been another attempt on his life," Ducky explains. "This time they almost succeeded."

"Oh my God! I should never have left him," she says, brushing past Abby and moving closer to Gibbs.

"It's hardly your fault," Ducky reminds her.

"Is he going to be okay?" she asks, stroking his forehead.

"I hope so, my dear. Hopefully, we found him in time," Ducky tells her. He continues on to tell her how they found him and how they discovered that he'd been overdosed. She is deeply distressed about the wholestory and sobs uncontrolably.Abby finds her inner strength and when she sees the young woman so upset, she becomes a comfort to her. Ducky smiles to himself when he realises something that would please Jethro, right at that moment, unbeknownst to him, he had the two most important women in his life at his bedside, keeping vigil.

----------

The Cherokee Jeep pulls into a motel just outside of town. Jen slowly drives past and observes the driver get out and walk to one of the ground floor rooms. She continues slowly past and makes a u-turn further down the road. She pulls into the gas station across from the motel and calls Tony to update him.

Not long after making the call, Tony and Ziva arrive at the gas station. Jen tells them which room he's in. They also contact the sheriff's office and inform them of the situation. As they discuss tactics, they notice another car pull into the parking lot of the motel. The director recognises the driver immediately. It's Donald Parkinson. She explains briefly to Tony and Ziva who he is and the significance of his presence. They decide to make a move on the two suspects. Inconspicuously they cross the road and approach the motel. Ziva carries out a quick check around back for possible escape routes and is satisfied to discover that there is only the front entrance to each room. She returns to Tony and Jen and indicates that all is well.

Tony approaches the door first and knocks loudly. A voice from inside responds "Who is it?"

"NCIS! Open the door," Tony answers.

Jen and Ziva stand back in anticipation, their weapons drawn. There is silence from the motel room for a few moments. Tony is gearing himself up to kick in the door when he hears the latch being opened. Cautiously he enters first, training his weapon on the two men inside.

"Keep your hands where I can see them," Tony warns.

Both men raise their hands and make no attempt to resist. Jen and Ziva join Tony in the room.

"Sit down," she orders. "Did you really think you would get away with it?" she asks angrily.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Dr. Parkinson replies, feigning shock.

"Let's start with the attempted murder of one of my agents. That's a capital offence," she replies menacingly. "I could list the rest but to be honest, I'd rather get out of this dive. Ziva, read them their rights."

Tony returns to the gas station and gets the car. He pulls up right outside the room. The 2 suspects are put into the car and driven to the sheriff's office for questioning. Jen really wants to be there for the interrogation but she is torn between her concern for Jethro and her desire for the truth. She decides to leave the questioning to Tony and Ziva and returns to the hospital to check on her agent.

---------


	13. Chapter 13

When Jen gets to the hospital, the scene in Gibbs' room is a sombre one. Ducky is staring aimlessly out of the window. Abby and Kelly are keeping a bedside vigil. She looks over at Gibbs. He looks so ill, in comparison to when she had seen him earlier that day. Ducky turns and silently acknowledges her arrival. The two girls just give a quick nod towards her before returning their attention to Gibbs. She walks over to Ducky.

"Any change?" she asks softly.

"I'm afraid not much. His vital signs have stabilised,but he's showing no signs of regaining consciousness. I must admit, I'm dreadfully worried," Ducky says emotionally.

"Me too, Ducky. I don't know what scares me more, Gibbs not waking up or him waking and not being the Jethro we know anymore," she whispers.

"I know. I suppose if you have any religious inclinations, now would be a good time for a prayer," Ducky tells her. She nods in agreement.

"We have a guy in custody," Jen says hoping some good news will lift spirits. "We arrested him at a motel, leaving town. Tony and Ziva are questioning him now. It looks like Kelly's uncle is involved too. I don't know whether I should tell her or not," she admits.

"Maybe hold off telling her for a while. Poor thing has been through a rough time in the last few days," Ducky advises.

"You're right, Ducky. It can wait. I'd better get back to the station. Call me if there's any news," she requests.

"I will, my dear," Ducky agrees as he walks her to the door.

When Jen gets to the station, Tony is already in the throes of his interview. He is questioning Thomas Maitland, the former doctor. He is not saying much and only admitting to taking the undertakers hearse for a "joyride". Ziva is interrogating Dr. Parkinson. He on the other hand is claiming innocence and blaming it all on Maitland. He admits supplying Maitland with the Fentanyl for what he thought was personal use. He claims he knew nothing of an attempt on Gibbs' life. Tony and Ziva leave the suspects alone in separate interview rooms. They meet with Jen in the observation room and compare notes. They agree to tell each suspect that the other is blaming him.

Tony returns to Maitland. He informs him that Parkinson has admitted supplying the Fentanyl but that he had no idea what it was to be used for and that he also claims ignorance of the attempt to run both Kelly and Gibbs off the road.

"That lying bastard," Maitland shouts. "He contacted me after your agent turned up at his office asking questions. He told me to use whatever means necessary to stop him asking questions. The car wreck was a warning. I thought that was the end of it, you know, shake him up a bit and he'd back off. But Parkinson went ballistic when he heard that the agent was still alive. He told me to finish the job or I wouldn't get paid. I really needed the money," Maitland explains shamefully.

"So what did you do?" Tony asks.

"I met him at a restaurant and he gave me a syringe. He told me how to administer it. He said it would work quickly. I never figured on the guy fighting back, so I had to improvise. I'd never killed a man before so I panicked and ran. What's going to happen to me?" he pleads.

"Can't say at this point. You should know that Special Agent Gibbs is still alive, but he's in a serious condition. If he dies, you'll probably be convicted of capital murder and that's the death penalty. You'll probably get exactly what you gave Gibbs, a lethal injection," Tony advises gleefully.

"I was only doing what Parkinson told me. Can't you get me a deal or something?" Maitland begs.

"What could you have that would be worth a deal? We have you both for attempted murder of a federal officer. You're both going away for a very long time," Tony replies.

"I know about the child abductions," Maitland answers eagerly.

"Child abductions? Really? " Tony responds and pauses momentarily. "Maybe we can talk. I'll have a word to my boss and see what I can do."

Jen is still watching from the observation room. Tony enters and asks,

"So, what do you think?"

"I think Dr. Parkinson has a lot of explaining to do," Jen replies.

"And Maitland? Will we make a deal?" Tony asks.

"If the information is good enough. I know Jethro wants answers. It would be nice to have them for him when he wakes up," she says optimistically.

Tony returns to the interview room and tells Maitland that they will try him on a lesser charge if he cooperates fully. Maitland eagerly agrees and begins to tell Tony the story from the time when he first met Parkinson to their arrest.

Ziva, on the other hand, is getting nowhere with Parkinson. He has refused to answer any of her questions until his lawyer gets there. Ziva is quite happy to leave Parkinson stewing in the interview room, especially knowing that Maitland is singing like a lark.

Over at the hospital, things are beginning to look up. Gibbs is starting to come around. He can hear voices but is struggling to find them. His eyelids feel as if they are welded together but he somehow manages to open them briefly. The light is blinding and he closes them quickly. Someone is saying his name. He tries to open them again and this time manages to keep them open a bit longer. The first face he sees is Abby's. She's leaning over him, with tears in her eyes. How did she get here, he wonders? He tries to speak but struggles to get the words out. He recognises Kelly and manages a weak smile. He can feel her holding his hand. He tries to squeeze her hand but his limbs feel alien to him. It is as if they won't obey him. He is still trying to focus his vision when Ducky leans in from the other side of the bed and startles him. He hears him telling him that he was going to be alright. Was he? He didn't feel alright.

Abby tries not to look shocked when Gibbs tries to speak. His words are slow and slurred. She and Ducky exchange a concerned glance. She realises all is not well but manages to maintain her composure for Gibbs' sake, and for Kelly's. Despite what Abby had hoped, Kelly had also noticed Gibbs difficulty speaking. She's hoping it only a temporary effect of the medication but her concerns are raised when she notices Gibbs lack of response when she squeezed his hand. Clinging to the hope that the weakness was temporary, she lets on she hadn't noticed.

Ducky did, however, notice. His medical background gave him an insight that the girls didn't have. He suspects that his friend may have suffered a mild stroke as a result of the oxygen deprivation. He takes time to reassure his pal once again before seeking the doctor. Once Ducky has explained to the doctor his suspicions, the doctor agrees to carry out some basic tests. He goes to Gibbs room and explains that he is going to carry out a number of tests to try and determine the extent of the mobility issues. The tests reveal some signs of weakness on the right hand side but the doctor is please that it is not as bad as he had initially feared. He is happy that Gibbs is displaying no signs of cognitive or intellectual degeneration and although his speech is slurred, he is confident that it would rectify itself with the aid of some speech therapy.

Kelly and Abby are relieved at this news. Gibbs, though relieved, is feeling a little frustrated, being weak and unable to communicate this frustration as fluently as he would wish. As usual, his good friend Ducky stays by his side. Having him there made Gibbs feel at ease and soon he drifts back to sleep.

Abby and Kelly decide to take a break from the room once Gibbs is sleeping and go to the cafeteria. As they stand in line, Kelly opens up to Abby.

"This is all my fault you know," she says, blaming herself.

"How do you figure that?" Abby asks.

"If I hadn't come back into his life, he wouldn't be in this situation," she replies.

"You can't blame yourself for what has happened. Anyway, finding you has given Gibbs back his life," Abby explains.

"Given him back his life? You mean almost cost him his life, don't you? I mean, is he ever going to be the same again?" she wonders as she looks aimlessly into the chill cabinet.

"Look Kelly, Gibbs is as tough as they come. Over the years he's been beaten, shot, even blown up and he's always come out on the right side. It may take a while but soon enough he'll be back at work and making our lives hell. We love it really," Abby tells her positively. "Now, where's the Kaf Pow?"

Kelly smiles, thinking to herself, for a girl whose looks could be intimidating to some, she really is a sweetheart.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Back in the hospital room, Gibbs has woken and Ducky is doing his best to keep his spirits up. He finds that he can no longer ignore the fear in the younger man's eyes and once again tries to allay his fears.

"There are so many therapies, Jethro, that you'll be back to work in no time," Ducky explains confidently. Gibbs reaches out and grabs hold of Ducky's sleeve. He looks intensely into the M.E.'s face.

"The truth….please," he says slowly and deliberately.

"I am telling you the truth, Jethro. Have I ever lied to you?" Ducky asks, touching Jethro's arm.

Gibbs relaxes slightly. He tries to remember a time when his friend had lied to him. He couldn't recall a single time. He trusted Ducky, always would.

"Actually Jethro, I almost forgot to tell you that Jennifer and Tony and Ziva arrested two people in connection with the attempts on your life. One of them is Kelly's uncle, I believe. They are questioning them now. I know, before you say anything that you'd like to be there but you can't and that's the end of it," Ducky says sternly.

Gibbs smiles and nods, thinking to himself, how well Ducky knows him. He would love to be able to grill Parkinson, to be honest, he'd love to flatten Parkinson, but he knows he can rely on Jen and his team to do the job almost as well as he would.

Back at the sheriff's office, Tony continues his interview with Maitland. He listens intently as Maitland explains how Parkinson and he arranged for Kelly's adoption. It began as an administrative error which Parkinson decided to cash in on. The child was listed as DOA and he knew a couple desperate for a child. He knew they would have to allow the military authorities to continue to believe that the soldier's wife and child had both died in the accident. Maitland and he had been friends since they both started as junior doctors at the hospital. Parkinson convinced Maitland to become involved for a cut of the money and all he had to do was to falsify admission papers. They found out that the grieving father was serving abroad later and that only made it easier for them as he wouldn't be around the hospital wanting to see the bodies or anything.

Parkinson himself dealt with the Stensons, who paid him $30,000. Maitland arranged for some of his student friends to pose as military personnel to break the news to the child that her father had been killed in action. Both he and Parkinson kept a close eye on their investment as she recovered and were glad to see her accept the Stensons as her new family. Falsifying adoption papers wasn't difficult at all and soon Kelly was adopted and nobody was any the wiser. It was so simple. Parkinson called it easy money. That was the first time they had done it. It wasn't the last. Maitland spilled his guts about three other occasions when they stole vulnerable children. He gave names, dates and any other details he could recall. He was going down and he knew it and he was offering up everything and anything he knew to try and save his skin.

By the time Ziva returned to Parkinson, she had the whole story. He sat there, lawyer at his side, totally dumbfounded. He took his lawyer's advice and decided to say nothing as he was charged with attempted murder and kidnapping. Jen was delighted that they had been successful in finding those who tried to kill Gibbs. To make it even better, she now knew the story of Kelly's abduction and couldn't wait to tell Gibbs the news.

After Maitland and Parkinson were locked up, the director and her two agents returned to the hospital to see Gibbs. They met Abby and Kelly in the corridor on their way back from the cafeteria. Jen was delighted to hear that Gibbs was conscious but worried to hear the girls talking about brain damage and possible stroke. As they approach the door of his room, she is almost afraid to go in. The others decide to wait outside so as not to crowd Gibbs. Slowly she opens the door and walks in.

"Ah, Jennifer!" Ducky exclaims as she enters. "Look who's here Jethro."

"How is he, Ducky?" she asks hesitantly, looking over at the pale figure lying on the bed.

"Much better, my dear, aren't you Jethro?" he says, standing out of the way so she can see for herself.

Gibbs is lying, slightly propped up and looking straight at her. He gives her a wink as a sign that he's ok. Jen pulls in a chair and sits beside the bed.

"I have news," she begins, before telling him the whole story of arresting Maitland and Parkinson and of Maitland's admission to the kidnapping and sale of Kelly to the Stensons. "We have agents on the way to the Stenson's house at the moment. We'll need to hear their side of things obviously but it looks like they knew about the whole thing. Poor Kelly, I'm not sure how to break it to her," she tells him.

She sees a tear building in his eyes as the emotion of the whole week sets in. "I'm sorry, Jethro," she says, unsure of what really to say. "It should never have happened but you have her back, don't let your anger cloud your relationship. You've got a second chance. Take it," she says sympathetically.

Gibbs nods and tries to put on a brave face. He squeezes Jen's hand weakly.

"Ask Kelly to come in," he says hoarsely. He wanted to talk to her. He wanted to break the news about the people she had called her parents for the last decade and a half. Ducky and Jen both leave the room and pretty soon Kelly enters alone. She takes up position in the chair at Gibbs' bedside. Gibbs begins to tell her about Parkinson and the Stensons. His speech is slow and deliberate but she is patient and allows him to say what he need to. As he speaks, Kelly allows her tears to flow freely. She couldn't believe what he was telling her. The Stenson's had been so good to her. She loved them. How could they have known about this all along? She wanted to see them but right now she knew where she had to be, at her father's side. He needed her. His recovery would be slow and she wouldn't let him down.

He asks her to come home with him, to live as a family again. She couldn't believe it. She was over the moon and agreed almost immediately. It was time to get back to her life. She no longer wanted to live the lie that was her life for the past 16 years. Her mother would have been so happy to see her and Jethro together after all this time. Who knows, Kelly thought, maybe she had a role in it all along?

THE END


End file.
